Returning to Wonderland
by Seraphic Melody
Summary: Mistaken for Alice, Allysia Gale is embroiled in a plot that threatens the fragile country of Wonderland. Will she stand up and embrace her role? Or will she die trying? OC x ?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

**So the Game Begins…**

The weather was mild, cool and pleasant. The afternoon sun flickered lazily as the clouds floated across the blue sky.

One girl lay outside on such a glorious afternoon, her back against the cool grass, the sun drenching her pale skin in light. Her blue eyes were fixated on a sleek novel in her hands.

_'Alice dismally continued haunting the cool forest, her fingers idly toying with the bottle in her hands._

_"What is this thing?" Alice wondered aloud, turning the slim bottle up towards the light._

_It was unlike anything she'd ever seen before. The bottle was delicately carved glass, its multifaceted surface refracting a shining rainbow of light. Its top was crafted into a delicate heart._

_"What was even in this bottle?" Alice wondered absently, recalling the strange liquid that sloshed inside. Then Alice remembered how exactly she drank it._'

"That stupid, perverted hare!" The young girl snapped the book shut, her mind in a tumult over the very thought. "I thought it was bad that the rabbit guy kidnapped her, but to make her drink it through a kiss?!"

She shivered in disgust. If a man ever did that to her, she would certainly beat him senseless. By no means would she allow anyone to subject her to that sort of degradation without facing some sort of consequences!

'_Oh… if my dear cousin heard such thoughts…_' At the notion, a laughter soon escaped from her throat. Oh, how she could certainly imagine a terrible scolding! A proper young woman shouldn't be thinking such violent things. She already could hear her cousin yelling at her for just lying on the ground.

"**Allysia Gale**, why are you on the grass like some sort of bum?!"

Allysia nodded her head in absolute agreement. '_Yep, that's something Eclaire would say…_'

Realization soon dawned over her, noting that the voice resonated from an actual person, not just from her own mind. This figure almost completely eclipsed the overhead sun, towering over her diminutive frame. Allysia titled her head up.

Lazily seating herself to a proper, upright position, she greeted warmly, "Hi there, Eclaire! Fancy seeing you here on a wonderful day as this!"

"Allysia, do not pretend like nothing's wrong. Honestly, I bought that dress just for you, and this is the thanks I get? Getting dust and dirt all over it?" Eclaire chided her sternly, her gloved hands firmly planted on her hips.

"You're just over exaggerating! It's perfectly fine." Allysia looked down at her navy blue dress, embroidered with a delicate lining of lace. It seemed spotless, and her white apron was still pristine and clean. Like Allysia would ever dream of getting it purposefully dirty. Eclaire would murder her if there was so much as a speck on the clothes.

Allysia never did like wearing such cutesy, lacy clothing. It always made her feel silly or uncomfortable, but she wore it to make her dear cousin happy.

She thought Eclaire always looked resplendent in such attire.

Allysia always thought she looked _ridiculous_.

"How I wish I could wear pants once in awhile…" she absently mused aloud, her blue eyes transcending towards the sky, not at all considering the ramifications for her words.

"Ludicrous! Absolutely and positively ludicrous! You are a young woman, and young women do not wear pants!" chastised her cousin, spittle raining over the brunette.

Hastily swiping away the stray droplets, Allysia challenged, "Why not? There are no rules against it. Doesn't it look comfortable, Eclaire?"

"Dear, you're so silly and naïve, Ally! There's nothing more preposterous. I cannot imagine a proper lady sporting trousers!"

'_Perhaps that's because you're an inflexible, conservative prune._' She kept such thoughts to herself. Offending her elder cousin was the last thing Allysia wanted to do.

"Besides, Ally, you look simply darling! I knew those clothes would look cute on you!" Eclaire squealed in delight, her curly blonde locks bouncing. "There's only one problem… dear, there's grass in your hair!"

Before she could run to safety, Eclaire pounced, attacking her long brown locks and fussing with the white headband in her hair.

"I don't understand how you could let this happen! You have such beautiful long hair. You should take better care of it! I would give anything to have mine at such a length."

"Would you like to trade then?"

The blonde woman simply laughed, combing through Allysia's hair for any more anomalies from nature. The poor brunette could do nothing, but sit there. Sometimes long hair was such a pain…_Sigh…_

"Eclaire, can you please leave your poor cousin alone? She finally returned home and already you're harassing her over her appearance."

Allysia held her breath, her heart beginning to palpitate with joy. Could it possibly be? She turned her head to face the source of the voice.

A jubilant squeal burst forth from her lips. "Mother!"

The older woman smiled at the two girls, kneeling down to embrace her daughter.

"Ally, how I've missed you!" Her mother said with a tender squeeze. "How was your stay with your father?"

"It was fine, and he wished he could be with you right now," Allysia said cheerfully as her mother sat herself beside her.

"He better! I know his work requires him to be away from home for extended periods of time so I truly don't mind."

"So how was your trip?" Eclaire asked politely.

Allysia grinned and began to say, "Oh, it was pretty bo–"

"Hush, Ally! I'm not talking to you! I already know all about your trip through all those letters you sent me," the blonde girl snapped and turned her sweet face towards the elder woman. "It's been awhile since I've seen Aunty ever since she went off to enjoy her book tour! Just how was it?"

Mrs. Gale simply said, "Not as exciting as you think it was, Eclaire. I'm just happy to return home." The woman released a sigh of relief, her gaze suddenly attracted by the novel in Allysia's hand. A grin curled at her lips. "Ah, so you finally had a chance to read my book. I thought you'd never start!"

"Au contraire! I'm actually three-fourths into it, Mother," the young brunette stated with a wag of her finger, opening the book once again.

"Doesn't look like it. You barely seem one quarter in!" said Eclaire, leaning in to get a closer look.

"That's because I always go back and reread certain parts," she mumbled, her blue eyes tearing through the pages in search of something.

Struck by curiosity, Mrs. Gale appeared close to her shoulder, skimming through the pages.

Her grin only grew wider.

"In search for your knight in shining armor, honey?" she teased.

Allysia's heart suddenly pumped heat into her cheeks as she swiftly closed the book, fervently shaking her head. "W… why would I do that? Those kinds of guys are incredibly cliché! You know I'm not that kind of person to be into that silly stuff."

Eclaire rolled her eyes as Mrs. Gale chuckled in acknowledgment. They both knew the brown-haired girl's exact disposition on fairytales.

Allysia absolutely _hated_ them.

"Even so, if I am correct, the one you are looking for is the _knight_ of hearts. Do you think he's cliché?"

Allysia cried defensively, "Absolutely not! He is one of the reasons why I actually like this story! Everything from the tale _Alice in Wonderland_ is given some sort of twist. The knight of hearts is certainly not your stereotypical knight."

"Yes, you're right. He's just some perverted psychopath," Eclaire callously blurted out, receiving a rather heated glare from her cousin. She quickly added, "But can I blame you, Ally? He's one of the most handsome psychos I've ever read!"

Her mother pointed out, "But you think every man in my book is exceedingly handsome."

With a delicate flush of her cheeks, the blonde girl swooned, "Well, it's true! They all sound so good-looking! You have no idea how jealous I am of Alice!"

"Well, it's not always about looks, cousin," Allysia said bluntly, her nose within the pages. "There are legitimate reasons why I like his character. I just feel as if I can identify with him more than any of the others."

Eclaire released a loud scoff. "In what way? Is it because you both are complete nutcases?" She swiftly sidestepped her cousin's assault, laughing at her failed attempt. "Personally I always preferred that Mad Hatter one! His character sounds incredibly dreamy…"

Allysia then took her chance to scoff. "You like every male character in the book. Yesterday, you liked the Cheshire Cat, the day before that you adored the twins, and the day before that you claimed that you were madly in love with the March Hare…" Now it was Allysia's turn to dodge, swiftly rolling out of the way of the blonde girl's assault.

"Eclaire, how unladylike of you! How could you try to hit me? Proper young women do not engage in such garrulous affairs. I can't even believe you, a little prim young woman, would like that incorrigible mafia boy…"

"Hold your tongue! A lady does not talk like that, and especially about my Hatter!" her cousin chided her severely, her face a flustered red. Eclaire allowed a quick calming breath to fly from her lips. "No wonder you haven't fallen in love or the other way around. It's almost impossible that attitude!"

The blue-eyed girl released an unladylike snort, accepting Eclaire's horrified glare with grace. "Love? As if I'll ever let that happen! That is just something people find in fairytales, cousin. They do not exist!"

"Don't say that! That's incredibly cynical, even for you!" said the blonde with a horrified gasp. "And to think you were already a rather gloomy, fatalistic one to begin with."

Before Allysia could even open her mouth to retaliate, her mother intervened. "Girls, stop fighting! Eclaire, please respect your cousin's views and not censure her. Allysia, hold your tongue and stop needling Eclaire. I just got home and wanted nothing more, but to spend time with my two favorite girls. All I get is a headache from your fighting. God, it's been far too long since you two seen each other… Can't you both set aside your issues and suggest something we all could enjoy?"

The two young girls stole a single glance at each other, Allysia's sapphire gaze capturing Eclaire's emeralds for a moment. They said in perfect unison, "How about a card game?"

Mrs. Gale clapped her hands together in agreement. "Splendid idea! Eclaire, why don't you run back home and grab a deck of cards? You should know where it is, right?"

The blonde female tentatively nodded her head, ravaging her brain for such info. Realizing she was standing there for a moment longer than she liked, she then trotted off. Only Allysia and her mother remained.

The sun was still very high in the sky, soaking them with its golden heat. The older woman glanced over to her daughter, seeing her bright blue eyes transfixed on the book while she lay back in the grassy floor. The two women remained completely silent, Mrs. Gale's gaze on her daughter, Allysia's on her novel.

Finally one spoke. "You know, your cousin is sort of right. Your view is rather pessimistic."

"Well, you always preferred honesty," she countered.

"I never knew you could be so brutal about it. Sweetheart, even so, you're far too young to be so negative about it. There will come a day when you would fall in love."

"I most certainly hope not!" Allysia cried in dissent. "These days love is twisted into something incomprehensible. It's a word that is overused, a form of manipulation to further one's selfish intentions. It's impossible for one to know true love. They just enamor themselves with the very idea, the lustful, visceral sensation. It's just a word you hear in fairytales."

Mrs. Gale blinked several times, regarding the young girl with curiosity evident in her eyes. Allysia's body was squared and tensed; her blue orbs retained a bitter, pensive gleam. Why was her daughter so cynical about love? Did something happen to make her that way? These were questions a concerned mother couldn't help, but wonder.

She thought better than to question her about it. There was no way even she could get Allysia to talk about her feelings. Once Allysia was ready to talk about her problems, she would talk. That much her mother was certain.

Mrs. Gale instead said, "I suppose so… you're not entirely wrong in thinking. There are many people who do not know what love truly is…"

Allysia snapped her head towards her mother, not at all expecting her to agree with her. The elder woman raised her gaze towards the sky. "You know, that is the premise of my novel - men saying they love a girl when they do not know what love is. You don't think poorly of that?"

"Actually that's one of many reasons why I enjoy your novel. The very idea perplexes me. How does Alice know what is true love?" The young Gale girl couldn't help, but ask.

"That's the eternal question, isn't it? How does _any_ human know when love is true? If you ask me that, then you truly must have only read three-fourths of the book!" Mrs. Gale released a melodic laugh, sounding very much like a rising crescendo of twinkling wind chimes in Allysia's ear. "Now, it would be rude if I spoiled the ending for you, but I can tell you something that would make up for it. It's a secret about my novel that no one knows about. You promise not to tell anyone?"

Her brown-haired daughter fervently nodded her head.

"That's excellent to hear! Now here's my secret: my novel is actually based on a true story!"

Her mother waited in rapt anticipation for her response.

Only complete silence answered her as well as a few vacant blinks of Allysia's eyes. Finally, there was another reaction: she began laughing.

"Mother, you didn't have to go through such lengths as to make up a story! I don't mind that you didn't tell me the ending of the novel," said Allysia, still chuckling under her breath.

Mrs. Gale's brows knitted together in confusion, gazing at her with palpable perplexity. "But I'm not making it up…"

"Sure, mother! Then please tell me about your inspiration? What did you base it off from rather than using that creative mind of yours?" Allysia challenged.

Her mother shrugged her shoulders and began her explanation, "I… I used to have this friend of mine. She was consumed by her elder sister's death and would remain inside her house in perpetual mourning. No one could get her out. All she could do was drown herself in her memories, escape to the time she was most happiest with her sister. The one day, she told me she was taken away – to the magical place of Wonderland. Believe it or not, you are sitting in the exact location where she was taken."

"Then let me guess. She told you about her whole experience once she returned home, and after many years, you decided to write a novel about it," Allysia said skeptically.

"Why, yes actually. It helped that she had an excellent memory. I can also assure you years after she went and told me about her experience, she never went there again." Mrs. Gale looked at her daughter for a long moment, her orbs holding her daughter's gaze. "I suppose I'm not surprised you don't really believe me. I myself don't believe it happened sometimes, but I needed to write it. I just had to. No matter how farfetched it may seem."

"But why, Mother? Why did you go through all that trouble to write it? Why did you need to do it?"

Before Mrs. Gale could open her mouth to enlighten her, a blonde female bobbed towards her, her long gown swishing side to side as she moved.

"Aunty, I am so sorry, but I cannot find it anywhere!" huffed Eclaire, daintily wiping a pearl of sweat from her temples. "Perhaps you can help me?"

Mrs. Gale nodded her head, patting down her dress as she rose to her feet. "Now, Allysia, you promise to remain awake when get return with the cards? You do have a terrible habit of falling asleep out here."

"Yeah, yeah. I can keep my eyes open long enough for you guys to get back," Allysia said airily, shooing them away with a languid flourish of her hand.

Her mother smiled and quickly embraced her, hastily whispering a single phrase into her ear. "It's because they needed a permanent reminder, something that immortalized them long after I passed away."

Then like the wind, Mrs. Gale had left her side, following Eclaire off in the distance.

The young woman then settled herself back down on the glass, her eyes intent on the novel. She never heard anything so preposterous! She knew her mother never took her as a fool. Why did she say something so ludicrous? Wonderland does not exist.

'_Or does it?_'

Allysia waved the thought away, her eyes suddenly growing heavy, her vision beginning to blur.

"Mom and Eclaire won't mind if I take a quick nap…" Allysia thought with a yawn. "Won't mind at all…"

Then she felt herself slip away and fall into sweet unconsciousness, freeing herself of all other apprehensions that occupied her mind…

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

He moved quickly, stealthily through the forest. A forest far unlike his home. A forest he could not help, but remember.

His heart palpitated in unison to his ungainly steps, prodding forward in a consistent pace; his scarlet eyes alight with determination.

He prayed with his whole heart that fate would work in his favor, allow him this chance to see her.

But how was he to know that she truly _was_ there? The possibility was for too slim, too unlikely. He still couldn't help, but hope.

Finally, he arrived at the edge of the forest. He nearly ceased breathing.

There she was. Not at all aging a single year, resplendent as he had seen her so long before. His heart skipped a beat as he approached her sleeping form, his elation uncontainable.

'_I finally found you… Alice._'

* * *

**Random A/N Notes**: This fanfic has been haunting my mind for ages ever since I read the manga and heard of the game shortly after. I want the game so bad~!

So this chapter merely introduces my OC, Allysia. The next chapter is when the gears really begin to turn.

Anyways, thanks for reading~


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Down the Rabbit Hole**

"Psst!" A voice whispered into her ear. It sounded nothing like the gentle tone of her mother or the bubbly Eclaire. Allysia dismissed it as the wind and continued sleeping.

"Psst! Wake up!" She groaned, grumbling for a few more moments of rest. "**Hey! Wake up!**"

Annoyed, the brunette slowly cracked a single eye open, desiring nothing more than to punish the person who disrupted her sleeping state.

Soon her other orb followed suit, gawking at a possible source for the voice. A white rabbit hovered right over her head, its scarlet eyes locked onto her own. Normally, Allysia wouldn't have minded seeing such a cute, little bunny.

'_But bunnies don't normally wear suits…_' When was it normal to see a rabbit garbed in a dapper red tartan jacket and pants? '_And with glasses no less!_'

"Haha! So funny, Eclaire! You have to do better than that to freak me out!" Allysia exclaimed with a laugh, her eyes scanning her surroundings in search of a blonde girl.

"Why are you calling for a pastry?"

Her body suddenly tensed, snapping her head towards the fluffy creature, his eyes pure and curious. It _did not_ do just what she thought it did.

"I'm the only one here after all!" The rabbit said in a rather whiny voice. She stared at the rabbit for a single moment… then closed her eyes and rolled over to her side.

"Oh boy. That's what I get for reading then falling asleep. Now I have this crazy dream with talking rabbits…"

The hare certainly was not pleased by such a reaction. "Come on!" he cried. "Aren't you supposed to come after me or something?"

Allysia remained completely silent, mentally chanting she was dreaming.

The rabbit released a sharp breath of air, upset about being ignored. Then there was a quick clicking noise as the rabbit opened a certain object. By the faint ticking noise, she assumed it was a pocket watch.

"Oh, this just won't do. It seems I'll be late if this keeps up. I suppose I have to do things the hard way…" Resisting her curiosity, she kept her eyes shut tight as the watch snapped to a close.

'_I'm only dreaming… this is all a dream…_'

"Now up you go!"

A shocked gasp escaped from her lips as her body suddenly left solid ground, cradled in a pair of strong arms. Her head lay against a broad, solid surface. Allysia opened her eyes. No longer did a tiny white rabbit hover above her head. Now she gaped at a man with deep white hair, his long furry ears protruding from his head.

'_What… what is he?_' she wondered before she finally coming to an important realization.

Thrashing her limbs about, she shouted, "Hey! You kidnapper rabbit person, I demand you to let me go this instant!"

The white-haired man chuckled in amusement and replied, "Why would I do that? I'm not letting you go! Besides, why wouldn't you want to come? Don't you have any idea where we're going?"

"No, I certainly do not! Where are you taking me?"

"Huh. I guess it's been longer than I thought. I guess a refresher is in order…"

Just as another inquiry flashed in her mind, Allysia's attention was attracted by a large gaping hole. It was huge; how could she have never seen anything like it before?

"You better not be thinking what I think you're thinking!"

"How else are we going to get there? It's the same exact way we got there before!"

"Where, bunny boy? Wh---"

Suddenly her sentence was clipped by a loud scream.

The man leapt right into the abyss, hurtling down with her carefully in between his arms. All air escaped from her lungs, her mouth wide with silent screams. The world spun wildly around her, flashing between blinding illumination, lurid red, and cold darkness. Her body felt light, her heart rising to her throat. Nausea stabbed her stomach.

Then as the world slowly fell into an inky blackness, Allysia could hear a single voice breathe into her ear, whispering a single word that wiggled its way into her dizzy mindset.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Allysia…" She felt her body rustle slightly, but was unable to perform further movement. Her body felt pinned to the cold floor, encapsulated in a heavy sheet of frozen ice.

"Allysia…" The voice called her name again.

She tried opening her eyes, but they refused to open. All that lay before her was perpetual darkness. She tried opening her mouth to speak. No words came out from her lips.

"You have a very important role to play… an important role indeed…"

'_What are you talking about?_' was her unspoken inquiry.

The man did not seem to take any notice of her attempt – his smooth, cool voice resonating once again. "Your role is very great… one that is not meant for the faint of heart. I wonder what you would choose? Would you embrace your perilous destiny or run away from it? I guess we'll all find out as the game progresses…"

'_Wha… what are you talking about? What role? What game? Is that the reason why I'm here?_' But all her questions remained unsaid, unheard.

This figure suddenly appeared right over her face, his sweet breath bathing her cold skin in blessed warmth. "I hope to see you again… Allysia."

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Oh dear… she fainted," the white-haired man quickly deliberated when they both landed. Quickly cleaning his suit of any detritus and dirt, he strode in long, deliberate steps towards the unconscious female's form.

Suddenly a very curious question floated up in his mind. '_Does she seem… different?_'

Of course, he could imagine that her choice of dress would change. Even still, there was something very strange about her, but he just could not put his finger on it…

Oh well. His love for Alice was unwavering, no matter how much she changed! She could have shaved her head and covered in filth and he still would love her!

He tenderly lifted her brown head, using his free hand to search for a special vial. He smiled, nostalgia washing over him as he held a clear bottle up in the air.

'_But just how am I going to make you drink this?_' The man wondered for a long, calculating moment. Of course, administering the drink in the fashion he had when he first brought her here was incredibly tempting, but he thought against it. She was terribly angry with him before and didn't want her upset with him yet again. Popping the cover off, he tipped the mouth of the vial to her lips.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Allysia slowly felt herself return to reality, her mind reiterating those words like a broken record. What was that supposed to mean? What was the game? What exactly was her role? None of it made any sense…

'_More importantly am I really alive right now?_' She was amazed she survived that deathly plunge, even at the cost of her throat. Her throat burned, desiccated, and crying for refreshment. Falling to one's possible death certainly did make on thirsty.

"Alice… please drink."

Suddenly, Allysia grew vaguely aware of her surroundings. Something hard and cold touched her lips. A cool flow of liquids lapped against her flesh, demanding entrance.

Thirsty as she was, she did not think about what she was doing and opened her mouth, drinking the contents with blind, parched lips. Finally, the flow of liquid ceased. Her senses heightened.

As the cool item receded, the young girl realized she wasn't lying just anywhere. She was lying in somewhere hard and warm – someone's arms, she feared. Falling victim to her inquisitive nature, she opened her eyes.

Lo and behold – the white-haired rabbit man hovered right above her, his spherical glasses glistening in the light.

"Glad to see you're finally awake."

Allysia yelped in surprise and pushed the man away, creating as much space as she possibly could between them.

"Hey, what did you make me drink? Where are we?" she blurted out, struggling to regain her poise.

He visibly frowned, gracefully rising to his feet. His eyes were tinged with definite melancholy. He raised the bottle up in the air. "Oh… you really don't remember what this is? Dear me, next thing you're going to say is that you have no idea who I am…" He felt the sentence trail off his tongue as he regarded the brunette's countenance. It was utterly blank, lacking the spark of familiarity he so truly yearned. "No! It hasn't been that long, has it? How could my cute little Alice forget me?"

She blinked at his dismal display, her mind repeating one word. '_Alice?_'

Just as she came to a powerful realization, he grasped her roughly by her arms, his face hovering mere inches over hers. "Well then. It's time for me to refresh your memory, Alice…"

Before she could open her mouth and explain he got the wrong girl, he smashed his lips onto hers.

Her mind suddenly fell completely blank, her aqueous orbs wide with shock. Just what the heck was happening?

After a long moment, he pulled back, examining her expression.

Allysia gazed at him with palpable surprise, her expression shell-shocked. Her mind certainly wasn't blank and empty anymore, swirling with various different thoughts. One thought especially took a prominent place in her mind.

The man stumbled back after a harsh impact, massaging his reddened cheek.

"Pervert!" was all Allysia could yell, her own cheeks flushed with an embarrassed crimson. "Who are you and what gives you the right to do that?"

The white-haired male stared at her for a moment before bursting into a light laughter. "Sorry, Alice! I knew you'd be upset, but I never expected you to slap me! You're more fiery than I remembered. It's okay though. I suppose I deserved it!"

'_What's up with him?_' Allysia felt her rage fizzle away, doused by a wave of incredulity. '_Is he some sort of masochistic rabbit?_'

"Hey, I don't care how crazy or perverted you are. I asked you a question, and I'd like an answer, rabbit."

To her annoyance, she wasn't sure he even heard her. He merely reached for his pocket watch and checked the time.

"Oh my! I'm going to be late! She would be most displeased if I'm tardy… I must be off!" He ran forward, but then paused. The rabbit man turned to face her and grinned. "It's Peter. Peter White. Don't forget it now. See you soon, Alice…"

"But I'm not…" Peter had already disappeared from her sight, leaving her there by her lonesome.

"Peter White, huh?" Her fists suddenly tightened into a taut ball, a vein erupting at her temple.

"That perverted rabbit! How dare he do something like that? So disgusting… and confusing me for some abusive girl I don't even know… He needs those glasses checked."

Allysia stomped forward, her body veiled with a thin layer of a rather murderous aura, intent on pummeling the hare for his deprave, dissolute actions if she ever saw him again.

Suddenly, she felt herself lose her balance, falling forward right on her face. "Ouch…"

Slowly recollecting her fallen composure, she winced as she sat herself up, wondering what in the world she tripped over.

Her brown lashes fluttered in surprise, staring straight at a crystallized object.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

After scaling down to the bottom level, the brown-haired girl found herself wandering aimlessly through a dense forest, her fingers toying with the cool bottle.

"What is this thing?" Allysia wondered, carefully cradling the fragile item in her hands. She assumed Peter dropped it when he left to attend whatever business he had. It wasn't like she was curious to know what he was late for. She was ecstatic to just be rid of that rabbit for even a little while.

"What did he even make me drink? What was even in the bottle?"

Allysia brought the bottle up into the light. It was unlike anything she'd ever seen before…

'_The bottle was delicately carved glass, its multifaceted surface refracting a shining rainbow of light. Its top was crafted into a delicate heart.'_

Allysia stumbled backward, almost dropping the bottle onto the forest floor.

"Oh my god…" One hand clasped her mouth as her mind evoked how the contents of the bottle were given and by what kind of man.

'_My novel is based off a true story…_'

"No way!" Allysia said with quick shake of her head. '_This is all one big dream. One horribly **perverted** dream. I'm going to wake up any moment now. Yeah, all a dream…_'

Her resolve fortified and her sanity seemingly intact, the brown-haired girl marched on forward, unaware of where she was going.

The forest was incredibly dense and thick, blocking all forms of illumination on her current location. Like she could figure anything out in her current state of mind.

Rubbing her thumb over the bottle to calm her erratic thoughts, Allysia finally walked into a clearing in the forest. Besieged with relief, she nearly ran out, hoping to see glorious civilization, preferably one she recognized.

What met her gaze when she exited the forest was a singular building, towering over her with its impressive majesty. A tall, metal gate separated her from the structure, Allysia duly noted as she brushed her fingers along the cold, dark bars.

What should she do? Should she try seeking help from whoever lived here? Then again, why would her dream prevent her from getting to safety? Does that mean the gate was protecting her from the horrors within? Or are the gates serving a symbolic representation in her dream, acting as a concrete barrier that prevented her from furthering her own growth?

'_And when did I ever think so much in a dream?_' Massaging her throbbing temples, Allysia began to turn around and walk away.

"Oh look, brother! Who do we have here? Can we help you?" a voice asked.

"Actually yes! I was hoping…" The young girl froze in her place gaping as two children dressed in similar guard uniforms stood before her. Though the colors did distinguish them – one wore red while the other was garbed blue – something else caught Allysia's fearful eye: two sharp, lethal axes.

"Do you have business here?" The one wearing red asked. She struggled to form a coherent sentence, but her breath was trapped in her lungs. "Uh… sort of. I just…"

"No matter!" The blue one said with a smile. "Even if you don't look like you can do much harm, our job is to take care of all trespassers!"

His twin smiled, raising his weapon in unison with his brother. "Yep! It's going to be quick and painless! We promise!"

She could not believe her ears. '_When did I have such vicious dreams?_' she wondered, nervous beads of sweat rolling down her forehead. She tried waking herself up, roughly pinching her arms as hard as she could. Nothing worked.

"Bye bye now!" The twins spoke in harmony. Allysia snapped her eyes shut as the twin axes flew down towards her skull.

Then silence.

'_…am I dead?_' was all she could think. She never even felt the blades graze her skin. Then again, they did say quick and painless…

She slowly opened her eyes, surprised to see the tips of the blades hover mere inches over her face. '_What the…?_'

She glanced passed the weapons to see the two child guards were dumb-founded, gawking at her. The axes receded as they continued staring, their expression void of all emotion – including the malice and dark delight on their faces.

She then was taken aback to see a joyous grin appear on their faces, recognition touching their eyes.

"Onee…"

"…chan?"

"Huh?" Allysia blurted out, confused. Before she could question them any further, the two young boys leapt straight towards her, wrapping their arms around her waist.

"Onee-chan, we thought we'd never see you again!" the blue boy cried.

The red one added, "We missed you so much, onee-chan!"

All Allysia could do was stare in astonishment at the sudden transformation, surprised by how quickly those bloody twins could turn into such affectionate kids.

"Look, you two, I'm sorry. But I'm really not your older sister. You've got…"

Her sentence was interrupted by the sound of a gunshot. All words died at her lips, feeling a bullet fly right over her head, the wind rustling strands of her brown hair.

"Hey! Are you trying to kill us, newbie-hare?" one twin shouted.

"Of course not. I was just trying to hit the more annoying one," the new figure said languidly.

"Ooh, sorry, brother, but you almost died!"

"Me? I'm not the annoying one! You are!"

"No, you are!"

"Shut up!" Then there was another shot, silencing the two twins. "You're just lucky I can't hit you both with one shot. So annoying… You guys are always playing around."

Allysia then took the moment to examine his overall appearance. Her blue eyes were first attracted to his head: long, brown rabbit eras protruded from his long, orange locks. Then she turned her gaze to gape at the firearm in his hand.

'_Why are my dreams suddenly transitioning to perverted to ultra violent? When do I have dreams with guns and axes… and strange rabbit men?_' Now that she thought of it, she did find him strangely familiar...

"Now seriously, just do your job. If the boss sees you two fooling around, he'll…" Then the rabbit man paused, staring at Allysia with a curiosity flickering over his face. The twins released the girl from their grasp, grinning from ear to ear. The man couldn't help, but exhibit a grin as well. "Well I'll be darned! I never thought I'd see you again!"

Allysia tilted her head slightly, confusion flickering over her aqueous orbs. Then something clicked.

"I thought you looked familiar… I don't think I can forget those ears." The man's smile grew wider. Just as he was going to reply, a low yelp escaped from his mouth, pain shooting up from the crown of his head.

"You, evil rabbit! How dare you kidnap and treat me like that?" yelled the brunette, her hands clasped onto his furry ears.

After a sharp inhalation of air, a low rumble resonated from the rabbit man. It took her a moment to realize that the rumble was actually laughter.

"Ha ha! Some things never change… Same old, same old!"

She then stopped her assault on his ears, regarding the man with dubious curiosity. "Why are you laughing? Shouldn't you be crying or begging for mercy, Mr. Rabbit? I'm practically ripping your ears out of your head."

"How many times do I have to tell you? I'm not a rabbit!" exclaimed the man, clearly affronted by the remark.

"But you look like one to me with those ears and all…" She then felt her brown lashes flutter in confusion, staring at the man's orange head with sudden interest.

'_Say… didn't he have glasses before… and a different hair color… and entirely different attire…_"

Realization slowly flowed into her features as a curious question floated into her mind. "Say… you're not Peter White, are you?"

The man frowned at the name, moaning, "There's no way I'm that psycho rabbit! We look nothing alike!"

At the confirmation, she promptly released his ears from her relentless hands, crying, "Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you, Mr. Rabbit! I'm really, truly sorry I confused you for someone else!"

Gently massaging his throbbing skull, he dismally said, "But how could you confuse me with that psycho rabbit? Don't you recognize me? It's me, Elliot March!"

Elliot seemed crestfallen to see her countenance remain completely blank, but quickly came to a new conclusion. "Oh! I get it! It's been awhile since we last seen each other, haven't we? It's okay if you don't remember me, Alice!"

'_Again with this Alice… Why do these people keep mistaking me for her?_' she inwardly griped. She couldn't possibly look like. These guys really need to have their vision checked.

"Listen, you guys really got it all wrong. I'm…"

"And we don't care if you don't remember us either, onee-chan!" cried the twins in glee, running towards her and giving her a tight hug. "Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum are just so happy to have Alice back!"

Just before she could correct them, Elliot cried, "Hey, I want to be a part of this group hug!"

The orange haired man ran and wrapped his arms around trio, causing all of them to topple to the ground. Allysia struggled to liberate herself, break away from the bone crushing weight. She barely had enough breath to tell them they were confusing her with another. She cared more, at that moment, to break free.

'_I'm so glad I'm really not this Alice chick. I wouldn't know how to cope with this sort of harassment on a daily basis…_'

Just when she thought her ribs were going to break, her lungs depleted of life-giving oxygen, a voice suddenly spoke up. "What are you three doing? If that is your new tactic of homicide, may I say that it seems not very effective."

The three men swiftly rose to their feet, inadvertently helping their captive to her feet.

"We weren't trying to kill someone!" defended Dee.

"For once…" Dum added quietly under his breath.

Allysia merely sighed in relief, filling her aching lungs with blessed oxygen. "Thank you… I wasn't sure how long I…"

Her mind suddenly fell into speechless vacuity, gaping at the new figure before her. The sultry voice belonged to a rather handsome man. His eyes were a smoldering green, and his long hair floated around his face like black smoke.

"You are very welcome, my lady," he drawled, his voice like smooth, golden honey. He adjusted the ornate top hat on his head, tipping it towards her with his gloved fingers.

She struggled to form intelligent words, her tongue refusing further cooperation.

The twins piped up. "Boss! Boss! Look who came back! It's Alice!"

"Bu… but, I… I'm not…" she stammered, cursing herself for her idiotic display.

"Not what?" was his question. Allysia tensed as this man drew closer, his expression cool, calm, and perfectly unruffled.

It disturbed her state of mind to think his appearance struck a cord of familiarity, more so in something she read. He was exactly the way she imagined him.

'**_The Mad Hatter…_**'

She struggled to hold her ground when the hatter appeared before her, leaning in to gain a closer examination of her figure. She dared not flinch and give him the satisfaction he unnerved her… even if it meant losing her breath.

The hatter arched a curious brow. "Interesting… you're not at all like Alice."

The March Hare and twins gasped in surprise, gawking at their superior with palpable astonishment.

Regaining her poise, Allysia snorted. "Of course not! That's what I've been trying to say ever since I got here."

The three other figures turned their attention to Allysia, their eyes as wide as saucers as they regarded her in curiosity.

"It's unbelievable… she's completely different foreigner, yet they both look so much alike…" Elliot breathed out in amazement.

"Okay, cut all this Alice crap out! I've been wanting to know one thing ever since I got here, but there hasn't been a single person to give me a single answer!" she shouted in frustration. "Just where am I?"

The dark-haired male kept his countenance calm and placid, permitting brief curiosity to pool into his orbs. He said, "Why, you're in the country of Clover, though many of us originated from the country of Hearts."

Her breath suddenly got caught in her throat, oxygen trapped in her lungs. Those words echoed in her mind, her eyes expanding at the very realization. She knew Clover and Heart were just other names for another place, a name she was far more familiar with.

'**_Wonderland._**'

Allysia then felt everything melt into an empty blackness, her mind floating in deep unconsciousness.

* * *

A/N Notes: Well, we're in Clover, folks. *throws confetti*

Thanks for reading~


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**Just a Dream…**

"Allysia…" A voice called out for her, its tone so deep and booming that it made her unsure whether it belonged to the person from her last dream. All she knew was she was back in the same place. Her body was frozen, trapped in eternal shadows. She did not bother trying to speak, knowing too well it would be fruitless if she even tried. "My, my! Whoever thought another foreigner would come and join our fun game?"

'_Again with the game,_' she inwardly groaned. '_Just what is that?_'

"And for a foreigner to actually have a role… exceedingly rare! What a grand twist! I wonder just what it is? It's a shame that even I don't seem to have a clue…" This voice paused in reflection. "Aw… It seems you must leave me! What a shame… I was hoping to spend more time with you. Worry not! We shall meet once again! I promise you that."

'_No wait! You can't leave! There's still so many questions I want answered!_' But as before, her cries remained silent, trapped in her mind for no one to hear.

"Now you have fun!" said the mysterious figure. "Everything will be revealed when the time is right…"

'_Wait…_' was all she could think, feeling herself submerge fro the darkness. Tiny flickers of light danced over her eyelids like dancing flames. '_But when would that time ever be right?_'

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

She slowly regained some sense of consciousness, falling back to reality. The familiar scent of tea wafted into her groggy senses. She assumed, by the way it smelt, it was black tea. Nostalgia surged through her mind, reminding her that her mother would always make that sort of tea. A gentle hand ran through her hair, reminding her far too much of the way her mother did it when she was a child.

She smiled and rustled slightly, grumbling, "I'm so glad you're here… I had the craziest dream…"

She slowly opened her eyes. Her smile evaporated from her features as shock began to take its pace.

Though this figure did share Mrs. Gale's eye color, the look he gave her was far from comforting. Tendrils of smoky ebony dripped down from his forehead, surrounding his face like black ink. She then suddenly became aware that it was his hand that stroked her hair, his lap she was lying on.

The hatter drawled smoothly, "I'm just doing the gentlemanly thing. It would not be right if I left a young lady by herself."

'_Well I doubt it's gentlemanly of you to put me in a position like this,_' she inwardly retorted, lacking all breath to speak her thoughts aloud.

"But I'm so very glad you appreciated my presence. You did seem rather content lying there."

Heat rushed into her features. Allysia yelped and unwittingly rolled right off the couch and down onto the floor. Quickly jumping to her feet and taking a few necessary steps back, Allysia exclaimed, "You… you're not supposed to be here!" The dark-haired male blinked in confusion, his emerald orbs inquiring why not. She failed to offer a response, commencing to pace about the room as she spoke her thoughts aloud. "This is just a dream. Yeah, I'm still dreaming…"

The man watched as the girl first harshly pinched her skin. Not seeing the results she desired, he gaped as her palm slapped right across her cheek.

"Ouch… this is one deep dream…" she grimaced, rubbing her reddening cheek. Her blue orbs took in her surroundings, stopping on a bare space of wall. The hatter notice a peculiar grin curve her lips, an idea sparkling gin her eyes.

"Perfect!" was all she could say before she charged straight into the wall, crashing into it with a resounding thud. Allysia whimpered as she dazedly stepped back, rubbing her sore face. "Hey… that kinda hurt… what a realistic dream."

The brunette began to lose her balance, toppling back onto the floor…

"Careful now."

Instead of feeling hardwood floor, Allysia fell onto something comfortable and warm, cradling her.

Her savior laughed. "Certainly, you're a different foreigner than the last one… but I suppose I can't say very much. I haven't met many personally, but you certainly are different!"

She questioned, "How so?"

"I never met a girl who enjoyed inflicting so much pain unto herself!" A chuckle rumbled through his body as he took noticed the irritated pout on her lips. He easily raised her back to her feet and gently guided her back to the couch.

Allysia began rubbing her temples and presented another question, "Just who are you… and where the heck am I?"

"My name is Blood Dupre," the Mad Hatter replied eloquently, "And you are currently in the Hatter estate – my personal office to be exact."

Allysia felt her body intrinsically tense. '_Why do I feel like my purity is in peril?_'

She simply shook her head of such irrational thoughts. There was no evidence to even support such a silly notion. Even if she had just met him, he treated her fairly well, possibly the best so far since she arrived in Clover. What could possibly happen?

"Oh whoops! Me and my manners! I never did thank you for saving me back there. I thought I was going to die from suffocation," she said with a grin. "I'm not sure you caught it, but my name---"

"Allysia. I remember," said Blood, "And there's no need. You should just consider yourself lucky that Elliot and the twins mistook you for another. They don't normally hesitate to kill someone. If it wasn't for that sheer stroke of good luck, you would be dead right now!"

"Oh… that's simply lovely," sulked Allysia. "It's always pleasant to know I could have been an apparition right now…"

Blood chuckled, finding himself rather amused by her sullen disposition. "You certainly are an entertaining one!"

'_Well, I don't remember being here for your entertainment,_' she wanted to refute, but her mouth refused to form such words.

All she could do was stare.

She failed to notice it before, occupied with the thought of losing her life, but now that she was free of such distractions, she could see it clearly.

Allysia was nearly overwhelmed by a sense of familiarity. There certainly was something about Blood that reminded her of someone she knew – not even through a book, but on a personal level. His physical appearance didn't ring any bell. There certainly was no one that looked quite like him.

'_So if it's not with how he looks, then just what is it?_'

"Is there something on my face?" Blood's voice broke through her reverie, appearing inches before her.

Allysia jumped back in surprise, her heart pumping all the blood to her flushed cheeks. "I… I'm sorry! I didn't mean to stare. It's just… you remind me of someone," Allysia apologized weakly.

"Oh really?" Interest flashed in his green irises. "May I inquire in what way?"

"Well… it's just – oh!" Allysia clapped her hands together when she came to a powerful realization. "I finally figured it out! The way you act definitely reminds me of this one person!"

Blood leaned forward in curiosity. "Oh? Do I remind you of your lover perhaps?" He simply watched as Allysia stared at him, confusion evident in her blue spheres.

He blinked as Allysia performed an unexpected reaction – she suddenly burst into hysterical laughter.

"Oh my god! No! Absolutely not!" She exclaimed in the midst of her laughter. She attempted to calm herself, grinning as she said, "You actually remind me of this one guy whom I _really_ hate!"

The hatter nearly toppled off the couch, surprised by the very frank proclamation. "You definitely are a different kind of foreigner," he noted aloud, recollecting his fallen composure. "Definitely not anything like Alice…"

"Of course not! I'm no one, but myself. It's infuriating to hear people keep mistaking me for that girl Alice," she pouted. "What is it? Do I really look like her or something?"

The hatter did not immediately offer a response, examining her with those deep, green eyes.

"To me, you two don't really look alike, but I can understand the confusion. Your physical appearance does remind me of her. For example…" Her body suddenly grew taut when he suddenly grasped a brown tendril, twirling it around his gloved finger before bringing it to his lips. "You both have the same, long chocolaty hair…" His lithe fingers released her tresses, moving to cup her face. "And even have a similar shape in countenance… but would you like to know how I knew you weren't Alice? It was quite obvious."

"W…what?" Allysia said rather lamely, struggling to hold her composure.

All breath escaped her lungs when Blood drew dangerously close, his sultry, green eyes capturing hers.

"It's those eyes…" Blood said huskily, his warm breath caressing her features. "They are a completely different shade. Instead of verdant green, yours are as lustrous as the sea - deep and bottomless ocean eyes."

"Uh… uh…" The girl stammered, her cheeks suddenly flaming. "How…"

Such proximity, such audacity… Allysia had never met such a person before.

'_I've never seen eyes as blue are yours, Ally._'

That little thought, that horrifying memory, snapped her out of her daze. Her fists clenched, and blood escaped from her knuckles.

"**How corny**!'

She swiftly pushed the hatter away, scooting all the way towards the other end of the couch. The young man stumbled and quickly gathered his poise, blinking in surprise over her behavior. He raised his gaze back to the young girl. He found himself perplexed to see how suddenly she lost her original luster, exchanging her vivacity for a dismal melancholia. Her gaze remained downcast and her voice shook as she spoke. "T… thank you for your hospitality, but I think I should get going. Again, thank you for everything."

She unsteadily rose to her feet, reverently bowed, and began staggering towards the door.

"Wait." She suddenly felt herself forced into a halt. A gloved manacle clasped around her wrist, restraining her from further movement. "You don't have to leave just yet. It's getting late. Why not you stay?"

"No, I really shouldn't…" But her words fell from her tongue when she was dragged down back onto the couch. She winced as the pressure on her wrist intensified.

"No, I insist," he said firmly, demanding almost. "You should stay here."

She was rendered completely speechless, not at all expecting something so forceful, so serious, ordering her like she was a mere pawn under his control.

'_You should stay with me…_'

Her muscles convulsed over the memory, a large lump blossoming in her throat. Her gaze darkened, and her fists tightened.

"How dare you!"

Before Blood could properly react, a fist already had collided into the side of his face. He released her from his grasp, his green orbs wide with shock.

"Who do you think I am?" She shouted, her blue orbs thrashing like a torrential storm. "I am not some sort of spineless insect you can simply manipulate. You cannot order me around like that, pervert!"

Blood gawked as Allysia stormed out the door with an irritated groan, slamming his door with a resonant thud. He merely sat there in silence for a few moments, processing the events that had just transpired.

"Allysia, huh?" he mumbled inaudibly, testing her name on his tongue. He brought his fingers to his face, massaging the tender skin. Blood then felt a smile curl his lips. "Very interesting."

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"**That pompous, pretentious lothario!**" Meanwhile, a very livid female had stomped out of the Hatter estate, a dark angry aura emanating from her being. "I hope I never see that incorrigible man again!"

As in the book, Allysia hated the Mad Hatter character for his mere personality. She never expected to share a similar loathing for one she just met.

'_This is all a dream, Ally…_' she consoled herself, controlling her breath to a calm, even pace. '_Just a really bad dream with sadistic children and perverted, rabbit men!_'

How she desired to awake from this nightmare… but how long could that be? She prayed that Eclaire or her mother would wake her up soon. There was no telling what else could happen…

"How odd… That Dupre guy was right. It is getting pretty dark." Her pace slowed and her head tilted up, staring at the darkening, purplish hue of the sky and noting the gradual loss of blessed illumination. A certain horror surged through her stomach at the thought of wandering the forest in the dark, all by herself.

_Rustle…_

Allysia jumped. "What was that?" Her breathe stilled, her heart even quieted to a low murmur in her chest. She stood completely frozen in her place. "Dear… I must be hearing things! Silly me," she said rather nervously.

_Crack!_

A tiny squeak bubbled out of her throat; paranoia besieged her mind. In quick, deliberate steps, Allysia continued walking forward. "Come on! There has to be another building or something… Please don't let me stay out here in the dark…"

To her greatest relief, Allysia saw a tall tower materialize from the thick, overbearing foliage. She had never felt so relieved to see another building before, more so thankful she didn't have to run back to the Mad Hatter's home for safety.

She quickly dove inside, relief unwinding her uptight self. Curiosity then struck her, making her wonder who exactly lived in this tall tower. The brunette meandered through the twisting halls before finally meeting a rather curious person, long rivulets of blue rippling down his broad shoulders.

Without thinking, she blurted out, "Hello?"

The blue-haired man whirled around in surprise at the sound of another voice. He, at first, blinked in surprise, regarding her sudden appearance with evident inquisitiveness. "Just who are you?" was his question.

With a quick, nervous swallow, she said slowly, "All… Allysia. I'm very sorry for intruding, but I just…"

"Well, Allysia, I suggest you leave now and go back home," the man responded dismissively, turning his back towards her.

"Oh no! You're not going to kick me out! I've been through way too much to deserve that!" She shouted, treading closer towards him. "First I was kidnapped by some stupid Peter White, forced to drink this even stupider potion, had to deal with some pervy hatter…!"

"Wait… Repeat that, please?" He said, a sudden interest touching his blue irises.

"Pervy hatter?"

"No, not that! The phrase before that!"

"... I drank this potion?" She repeated in confusion, holding the blue bottle carefully between her fingers.

His face had suddenly blanched, growing dismally pale. The blue-haired man grumbled almost incoherently under his breath, "That reckless rabbit… he did it again… Bringing another foreigner…"

She piped up, "Foreigner… I heard that term several times before. Just what is that?"

He then started walking away, gesturing her to follow. "We'll continue this discussion somewhere else. Please come with me, and I'll see if I can answer your questions for you."

With a tentative nod of her head, Allysia did not hesitate to follow him. After all, he seemed like the sanest person she had met when she arrived in this strange new world. She had to take full advantage of that.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Julius. Julius Monrey the Master of Clocks in Clover.

That was what how he began his rather lengthy explanation of the new world. Allysia had sat in rapt interest as Julius entertained several of her questions. Apparently, foreigners were simply people from another realm, and people like her are not very common.

She also got to understand the general geography of Clover. To her amazement, there were five other territories in this world, including her current location in Clover Tower. There was the Castle of Hearts with the Queen of Hearts as the ruler, the Amusement Park, led by a man known as Gowland, and the Hatter Estate, one she had already visited.

Her jaw nearly fell collapsed to the floor to hear that she truly was lucky to survive. That "pervy hatter" was actually the leader of the Hatter mafia, the infamous Blood Dupre. She could barely wrap her mind around it – both how her life was spared and how that perverted man could hold such a great position.

Julius did not go into much depth about the new territory in Clover, one that Allysia knew was not detailed in her mother's book. He didn't even explain much about the general rules and what exactly is the "game" she's forced to play. After a few questions, he simply sat there in contemplative silence, scrutinizing her overall appearance with inexpressive eyes.

"It's amazing. Despite the difference in eye color, your resemblance to Alice is striking," breathed out Julius in amazement.

"So I have been told…" Allysia mumbled crossly, her mind evoking a rather recent and annoying memory. "But just who was she? It's annoying to keep being accused of being someone whom I don't know."

Julius explained glibly, "She was an old friend of ours, a foreigner like you who stayed with us for quite some time… that is until she decided to leave and return home."

"So there is a way back home!" She exclaimed in delight. "I knew it! Will you tell me, Mr. Clock Repairman?"

Before Julius could open his mouth and possibly reprimand her for not addressing him by his given name, another figure appeared right behind him. "Julius~!"

"Oh dear god…" he grumbled, turning his gaze to the new man. "What do you want, Nightmare? I'm very busy."

The man named Nightmare merely grinned and replied, "I know you are! I just wanted to drop by and ask if you had yet reconsidered not submitting ideas for the festival we're having very soon!" Julius did not waste anytime saying no. Nightmare deflated, a chagrin appearing on his lips. "Oh, come on, Julius! You certainly must have something…?"

His eye (not eyes, Allysia realized, for his other eye was concealed by an eye patch) finally took note of the Gale's presence, staring at her for a brief period of time. He scoffed in amusement. "Well, isn't this funny! Seriously, does that Peter have eyes? Silly rabbit for confusing two completely different girls…"

She then questioned the clock master, "Say who's the pirate man?"

The gray-haired male stuttered at the reference, clearly affronted. "Pirate? Just so you know, I certainly am _not_ a pirate!"

She then challenged, "Oh yeah? Then why do you have an eye patch?"

He opened his mouth to retort, but quickly snapped it shut. His voice dropped a decibel as he whined, "I always thought the eye patch made me look cool…"

"Oh be a man and get over it!" She said callously, not at all feeling any guilt over his frankly pitiful display. "If it's any consolation, I guess I have to say you look like a pretty cool pirate at least."

"Okay! Apology accepted!" He said blithely, all of his original grief vanishing in an instant. "You're a nicer foreigner than I thought!"

She merely rolled her eyes, mentally classifying this new figure as a bipolar weirdo, a wonderful addition amongst the other perverts and violent people she catalogued into her brain.

"So, what's your name, girl?"

She answered glibly, "Allysia."

"Well, well! Allysia, I then formally introduce myself as Nightmare Gottschalk, humble owner of Clover Tower. Welcome," he said with an elegant bow.

She tried her hardest not to laugh. '_This guy's seriously the leader of this place? How is this tower still standing?_'

"Nightmare-sama!" A new voice called out, materializing from the doorway. "Sir, it's late. You shouldn't be bothering Julius now. You need your rest."

"Hmph!" grunted Nightmare. "I can do whatever I please! I am perfectly fine!"

This new figure merely shook his dark locks, clearly unsure how he should further handle the situation. He then glanced over towards her direction. Curiosity glowed in golden irises. "Who might you be?"

Just as Allysia was about to open her mouth and offer brief introductions, an arm snaked around her neck and a voice supplied, "This is my new friend Allysia, Gray! Allysia, this is Gray Ringmarc, my subordinate!"

Gray nodded his head in acknowledgment. _'Oh great… In my dream, I'm friends with a pirate. Lovely._'

With an irritated nerve pulsating from his temple, Nightmare shouted, "I'm not a pirate, dammit!"

"Ah! The pirate can read my mind!"

"Yes, I can. It's a gift of mine. It comes being an incubus and all… not a goddamn pirate!"

"Incubus, huh?" Allysia considered his clarification for a moment, processing it in her mind. "…Sounds rather tasty. Is it edible?"

"…You just want to get me mad, don't you?" Nightmare said with strained patience, his single orb narrowed in a leer.

Before the incubus or she could say anymore, Julius said, "It's late. Allysia, you look exhausted. If you'd like, you can stay the night here. I don't care… it's not like you have anywhere else to go."

Nightmare cried, "Hey! You can't be inviting people to stay! This is my tower after all!"

"And on behalf of Mr. Gottschalk, you can retire here, Allysia," Gray said, ignoring his superior's annoyed pout. Allysia agreed to the offer, following the three as they guided her towards her room.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Allysia moaned in relief, "Thank god! Bed!"

She collapsed her tired body onto the large mattress, not thinking of a time when she was so glad to be lying down and out of her clothes. Her gray nightgown was fairly comfortable enough, flowing down to her mid-thigh. Of course, she certainly could live without the ruffles that pleated her neckline as well as the single little bow, but she could not offer any complaints. All she cared about at the moment was the bed.

'_What have I gotten myself into?_' she mused, tucking herself within the soft sheets. So many things happened that it made her wonder whether everything was a truly a dream or not.

What happens if this all wasn't just a figment of her imagination? What if she really was in Wonderland…?

'_No, stop it, Ally,_' she inwardly chastised herself. '_You can't be dwelling on such silly thoughts…_'

But still those thoughts persisted, producing further unease in her chest. All she wanted to do was wake up already and go back home – to her kooky Eclaire and her mother. There was nothing from her mother to comfort her. She didn't have her mother's novel (which she suspected she dropped when the damned rabbit Peter kidnapped her).

'_There's only one thing left,_' she thought sleepily, her eyes drawing to a close. '_The locket Mother gave me…_'

At that thought, she abruptly sat upright, her eyes wide with a startling realization.

"My locket…" She frantically touched her neck, her anxiety rising to feel it utterly bare. "I don't have it…"

Allysia then leapt off from the bed, scouring her belongings and her general surroundings for any sight of her most precious piece of jewelry. Alas, no matter how she combed the room for her locket, even overturning furniture if it proved necessary, she simply could not find it.

'_I swore I had it when I fell down the hole and after that terrible encounter with Peter,_' she thought fretfully. She could only think of one possibility. Perhaps Allysia dropped it in…?

She immediately shook her head of such thoughts. '_No! I refuse to think I dropped it there of all places! It's somewhere here! I'm sure of it! I'm just going to sleep now and forget my brain had even considered that as a possibility._'

So, Allysia did exactly as she said. She crawled right back into her bed and willed herself to sleep. She hoped that blessed unconsciousness would rid her head of such disconcerting thoughts, possibly even wake herself from this nightmare.

Or so she hoped. Another little surprise was apparently in store for her when she finally went to sleep…

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"My, my! Here we are again!" A strangely familiar voice said. "I did tell you we'd see each other again, didn't I?"

'T_hat voice…_' she thought. '_Where have I heard that voice?_'

"And dear me, Allysia, you surely are making quite the splash here! Gray and Julius were blown away to see someone like you. As I expected of course."

'_Yes… yes, I do know this guy…_' But did she truly want to know? She had a strange premonition that she would not like the answer, not one bit.

Ignoring her instinct, she attempted to open her eyes.

For once, she was able to see perfectly clear. The dark veil of darkness gave way to a phantasmagoria of light, a coalescing rainbow of color in a midst of green. And what she saw was certainly not something she would have liked to see. "You!" She cried, pointing her fingers at the silvery haired man. "Pirate Man, why are you in my dream!?"

"It's Nightmare! _Nightmare_! Not Pirate Man!" he shouted vehemently.

Allysia merely rolled her eyes. "Whatever… are you going to explain why you're in my dream or not?"

Nightmare explained quickly that it was another one of his unique gifts – one not many have, he boasted. He reigns over the realm of dreams, and consequently can speak to whoever enters his domain.

"Oh! If that's so, then you must have been the one that tried speaking to me those other two times?"

The incubus blinked in confusion, stating, "Other two times? I think you must be confused. I believe I tried talking to only once before."

Allysia merely gaped at him, mulling over the gravity of his words in her mind. '_If that's so, then who was that other person? Was it all just my imagination?_'

"And I'm so glad you decided to wake up today! It's always nice to speak with someone while their conscious," Nightmare exclaimed cheerfully. "Is there anything else you'd like to talk about? I know Julius told you quite a lot!"

Allysia then asked, "There was one or two things he failed to explain. The game. What is it?"

With a knowing grin, he replied, "It's game played by all role holders of Clover. We all have a specific role to play and have set rules we must follow!" Seeing her inquisition, Nightmare decided to offer further elaboration. "Role holders are people much like those you've met so far. Julius Monrey holds his role as the Master of Clocks while the role of Mad Hatter is Blood Dupre. All are very unique characters whom I sure you will meet in due time!"

She nodded her head in acknowledgement, secretly hoping otherwise. "What about me? Why am I here?"

"It's not that impossible for foreigners to come to Clover. We all have met at least one other foreigner – Alice, you probably deduced. Foreigners may come here if they so truly choose so."

"Well I believe I'm an exception to that. I came her against my will!" She cried. "Did Alice come her because she wanted to?"

He supplied happily, "Absolutely not! She came here by the same means as you – kidnapped by Peter White." At the very mention of Peter, Allysia flinched, her fists instinctively curling into tight fists. "So both of your cases are very special. Peter White was madly in love with dear Alice and brought her to this world. It was with the pretense of his affection did she come here."

She then said, "But I doubt Peter loved me more than he did Alice. How did _I_ get here then?"

"Let me just say that you… are an exceedingly special case."

She considered that in her mind before she came to a new conclusion. "Wait… why am I getting so worried about all these little details? This is a dream after all! I shouldn't care how I got here. I'll wake up soon enough."

An emotion flickered beneath Nightmare's silvery orbs; a laughter rumbled through his chest. "A dream, eh? Whatever suits your fancy! Well I must be off. There are still so many other people I need to see! Take care, dear Allysia!'

With a quick wave of his hand, Nightmare disappeared in thin air, leaving the brunette by herself. A sigh escaped her lips. There was a part of her that regretted not further interrogating the incubus. There still were so many questions that troubled her mind, so many things she wanted answers.

The other part of herself merely dismissed her curiosity as a fleeting fancy. This was all a dream after all. It was rather curious that she was having a dream within a dream, but stranger things have happened. She then lay herself down and closed her eyes, thinking rest would ease her mind.

She needed all the strength she could get. After all, she didn't know of challenges would meet her the next day.

**

* * *

**

**A/N Notes:** Ah~ Chapter 3, how many problems thou hast bestowed me! It hadn't turned out exactly the way I planned it (Not sure if that's good or bad...). It took me quite awhile since I was trying to research and understand several of their characters. Sorry if there is any OOC-ness. I'm trying!

Information on any of the characters' personalities, backgrounds, etc. (especially Pierce, Gray, and even Joker), would be greatly appreciated! I can only get so much through the ways of the internet so anything would be fine. It's not necessary, but it would be nice. I lack access to the game so my knowledge is limited to random tidbits I hear and the manga.

Anyways, Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**A Warm Welcome**

_The surrounding air stung her lungs, the incoming chill already piercing her skin. Her feet stomped through the forest debris, leaping over fallen branches and leaves._

_Run. That's all she could think of doing. Run like a little, cowardly rabbit from her predator. Run like her life depended on it. It was a natural, primordial instinct, especially in the face of certain death._

_'And my life really is in danger...' she thought hastily. If she couldn't escape, Allysia was sure she would die._

_'Come on... Wake up, wake up, WAKE UP!'_

_A scream rushed out from her lips when the scythe rushed towards her head. She quickly rolled out of the way, staggering back to a run. She dared not look back, not at her pursuer close behind her, his feet crunching against the sylvan ground._

_Suddenly he materialized directly before her, his deathly weapon sending a wide slash towards her._

_She only barely dodged the assault. The blade managed to produce a large gash on her arm, sticky droplets of scarlet streaming down and onto the ground. She nervously stumbled, grasping her numb arm with anxious fingers. She collapsed back, tripping over a tree's root. An uncomfortable tingling shot up from her ankle, cursing her into unwarranted immobility. Her heart pounded noisily in her ears as she looked up._

_Her assailant treaded dangerously towards her, resembling very much like a black panther who had just cornered its prey. His blue orbs were luminous in the waning light, casting a predatory and malevolent light._

_'It's a dream...'_

_Allysia tried rising to her feet. A shock rode up the length of her leg, forcing her to stay on the ground._

_'It's a dream...'_

_A gasp caught her breath when she saw the man grew dangerously close, his scythe sending a ghastly glow._

_'It's a dream!'_

_She felt her whole body freeze as he appeared right over her._

_'What if... this isn't a dream?' The thought rolled silently into her head, almost sounding in unison with heavy beatings of her heart._

_'What if... This is all...' The man raised his scythe high into the air. '...__**Real?**__'_

_Then, as his assailant brought his weapon down onto her, her sight faded to a cold blackness._

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Allysia snapped awake. Her breath was ragged, coming forth in uneven bursts. Her long, brown hair clung to her sweaty neck.

'_That was just a dream,_' she assured herself, wiping her hot face with the white sheets. A chagrin appeared at her lips as she took in her surroundings, the lonely solitude that encompassed her. '_...Just a dream within a dream._'

With a sigh, Allysia rose to her feet, changed her clothes, and stepped outside.

"Where is everyone?" she wondered aloud, seeing not a single soul. There was only a quiet, peaceful silence. "I guess everyone is still asleep."

She strolled towards the window and look outside, the sun placing a gentle kiss on her cold cheek.

The outside world was gloriously alive and awake. Birds were singing their sweet salutation to the rising star; the trees foliage seemed like an emerald green sea. She wondered what else could be out there. Since she convinced herself this all was a dream, she figured it only made sense she explore it. Who knew what other wonders she would find in Wonderland?

Swiping a paper and pen and quickly writing a note, Allysia stepped back out into the outside world and began to wander.

"It's so peaceful," she noted blissfully. Everything seemed so quiet, so calm. Allysia would have doubted there was another human being in miles.

She filled her lungs with the sweet morning air, allowing it to settle, before releasing it back out. Surely there was nothing that could disrupt such perfect serenity.

'_...Yeah, nothing at all._'

But nothing is ever as it seems in Clover. There was always a surprise for her, waiting at every corner. Now was no exception.

There was a sudden impact to her side, causing her to fall onto the ground.

'_Whoa... What hit me?_' she mused in her groggy mindset, trying to dismiss the weight on top of her.

"Ow... That kinda hurt."

Realization flowed into her eyes, realizing that the thing that hit her was a person - a man to be exact. Swiftly gathering her wits, she looked up.

Her breath was caught in her throat as her eyes captured a pair of scarlet.

'_I can't believe it... is it really?_'

They stayed in that position for a long moment before the man jumped to his feet. He brushed off his red coat and said with a grin, "Sorry, miss! I'm really sorry for that!" He offered his hand to help her up.

Shaking herself from her dumbfounded state, she allowed him to assist her up and replied, "It's alright."

She then became very conscious of his curious gaze, regarding her figure for a long moment. "If you don't mind me asking, what's your name? You remind me of someone I knew."

Allysia rolled her eyes, not surprised by that statement. "Allysia Gale," she supplied. Just as she was going to say more, an angry roar reverberated from the forest's depths.

The knight glanced back, a smile still on his face. "Ah, I guess that big guy's still after me! I thought it would get tired by now!"

Allysia felt her head incline slightly, accentuating her confusion. "Wah?"

"Come on! Let's go!"

Before Allysia could question him any further, he quickly swung her over his shoulders and carried her off.

"Wait, what are we - oh my god!" Her eyes expanded into two wide blue disks when she saw a large bear snarling through the brush, rampaging after them. "What the hell is that?"

"It's a bear!" he replied with unusual cheerfulness.

"I know that much! I have eyes!"

"Then why'd you ask?"

"Just tell me why it's chasing you!"

"Actually, as of current, it's chasing after the both of us," the knight corrected, scaling a tall tree and settling them both on a branch. "I got a little lost and ran into a little bear. I was just petting the cub when that big one came barreling after me! I guess I'm not that good with animals!"

"Indeed," she said rather dryly, nervously watching the animal growl at them, scratching against the bark until a tiny bear appeared. Finding it futile to chase them any further, it turned towards the cub and began to walk away. '_Those mama bears can get rather protective..._'

"Looks like we're safe now," the brown-haired man noted and turned his head back towards her. "Oh! I never did introduce myself, did I, Allysia? My name's Ace, and I'm a knight from the Castle of Hearts!"

Her heart thumped a little harder, brimming with excitement over the thought of meeting her favorite character in real life... in a dream, she soon corrected herself.

Dismissing her excitement, she inquired, "So you got lost while trying to get to the castle, I guess?"

Ace nodded his head. "Yep! Before I met that bear, I accidentally stumbled into the Hatter Estate. They're always helpful people and tried showing me the way!" Ace then grew curious when Allysia released a loud groan at the very mention of the place. Ace blinked confusedly. "Oh? You've been there already? I assumed you were new to Clover."

Allysia elucidated, "Yes, I am new here, but I have been to the Hatter Estate... against my dear will."

The brown-haired male nodded his head in consideration before suggesting, "Oh! Then you have to come to see the Castle of Hearts! It's not fair you got to see that." As Allysia opened her mouth in protest, he quickly cut in. "Consider it my way of welcoming you! Come on! I know the way!"

Allysia said nervously, "Are you certain?"

"Of course!" Then Ace began walking forward in a confident stride.

"Listen, I know I just got here, but I would have assumed that big building off in the distance would be the castle," she pointed out, glancing over towards the heart-shaped structure standing above the green foliage.

Ace stared at the sight for a singular moment before exclaiming, "Oh! Right! You have good eyes! Let's go then!"

'_Strange person,_' Allysia concluded, watching at the Knight of Hearts began strolling towards an entirely different direction. '_…But he has been in that castle countless times. He surely most know his way there._'

So, Allysia trailed right behind him, deeper into the forest…

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Oh, sorry that took so long!" said Ace rather contritely, rubbing his head as they finally reached the castle. "I've always had a bad sense of direction and frequently lose my way… but I got us there, didn't I?"

Allysia did not utter a word, restraining herself in fear she would say something unsavory. '_You tell me now? It doesn't help that my sense of direction is fairly terrible as well…_'

Ace, who was still in good spirits, guided her within the castle vicinity. Several maids and soldiers greeted the knight as he passed by. She tried her best not to stare. She told herself it wasn't creepy that they didn't have any faces. Not at all…

"Alice!" sang a familiar voice, sending shivers all throughout her body. Just before she could locate the source of the voice and run to blessed safety, a humanoid rabbit wrapped his arms affectionately around her neck. "Oh, Alice! I missed you so!"

Trying with all her might to shrug him off, she screamed, "GET AWAY FROM ME YOU, PERVERTED HARE! I'M NOT ALICE!"

Peter merely chuckled, "Oh, you say such funny things! You don't have to be embarrassed!"

"I am not embarrassed!" She insisted with a withering glower.

"I can't believe my sweet Alice came to visit me!" He swooned, ignoring the nearly corporeal waves of irritation or the venom lacing her words. "This makes me so happy!"

Ace finally opened his mouth, informing him, "Actually, she didn't come to see you. I brought her here!"

Peter's crimson orbs finally acknowledged Ace's presence, narrowing into an irritated glare. "Ace… what are you doing here with my Alice?"

"Oh, I was just taking her to see the castle!" Ace grinned even wider. "I hate to break it to you, Mr. White, but that isn't Alice."

He barked in outrage, "What do you mean? This is most certainly Alice, you blind buffoon!"

"Actually, he's right," Allysia piped up. "My name's Allysia."

Shock splintered his cheerful countenance, his spirits plummeting down into the ground. He placed her at arm's length, scanning her face. Choosing denial, he scoffed. "I can't believe you'd put Alice up to lie to my face. That's low even for you, knight." He released the brunette from his arms and firmly grasped her hand. "Come on, Alice. We're going to have her majesty decide who's right!"

Before Allysia knew it, Peter dragged her across the courtyard and within the castle walls. His speed was unfathomable, running so fast that she almost thought her very skin was peeling off.

Allysia released a grateful sigh of relief when Peter finally halted.

Peter demanded in a breathless voice, "Your majesty, you really must tell that... _idiot_," - he flung a pointed finger to the happy knight who had followed them with sheer ease - "that this girl is Alice!"

"Oh, Alice finally returned to see Us again?" Allysia looked up to see the queen perched regally on her throne.

She certainly was beautiful, regaled with clothing that oozed nobility. She was what Allysia would have imagined the Queen of Hearts to be - stunning, poised, and elegant.

'_And here I am just plain and simply ordinary._'

She nearly felt inferior in her presence, growing smaller and more insignificant as she rose from her seat and waltzed towards her. Her amethyst orbs regarded her being meticulously, knitting a dark brow in consternation.

Peter stood in relative triumph, shooting Ace a smug grin. The red knight offered no further response, his face still retaining a cheerful smile.

Before Allysia knew it, the queen suddenly grasped her cheeks with her hands, moving her face in all sorts of uncomfortable directions. She willed herself to endure it, finding it more bearable in comparison to Peter's death hugs.

Finally, the queen released her face and took a single step back. "Just as We thought."

The White Rabbit cried optimistically, "So, I am right? She is as my sweet Alice, Vivaldi?"

She met the hare's gaze briefly and reverted back to the confused girl. Her face remained emotionless as she spoke in a rather deadpanned tone, "This girl... is just another foreigner. We find her style of dress to be too dowdy to be Our Alice."

Ace turned a jubilant eye towards the White Rabbit, the cheer on his face nearly screaming I told you so. Peter refused to turn towards the man, his mouth nearly plummeting to the floor in shock. "What?"

Allysia merely gawked at Vivaldi, clearly affronted by her distinction. "...Hey! I know I don't normally wear this kind of stuff, but this was a present from Eclaire."

"Now's not the time to be discussing food!" he exclaimed in a distraught voice. The rabbit roughly grasped her by the arms, his red orbs staring into her face. "You have to be Alice... You just have to be..."

Even as he said this and repeated it in monotonous succession, his voice grew softer and wavered the longer he looked at her. His whole being wilted. His smile melted to a discontent frown as he released Allysia from his hold. Crestfallen, he finally succumbed to the truth. "I guess... I got the wrong girl."

Pumping a fist into the air, Ace shouted, "Victory!"

Ignoring Ace's cry of triumph, he nearly fell to his knees and begged, "Oh dear! You have no idea how sorry I am! It's just you two look so much alike... If you changed your eye color then you two could be twins!" She limply nodded her head, refusing to counter his assertions. She was merely glad to be free of his affections. Her poor body probably couldn't take any more... "Yay! Allysia forgives me!"

"Hey! I already proved I'm not Alice! Get off of me, you damn pervert!" she cried, trying to push him away as he hugged her.

"But even though you're not Alice, Allysia is still so cute! Why wouldn't I want to hug you?"

'_Because I don't like being hugged by you._'

Ace whined, "Hey, no fair! I want to hug her too!"

Before either could protest against it, the brown-haired knight flung himself onto Allysia, tackling both to the ground. Her face nearly flushed a bright crimson, feeling both men nuzzle against her neck. "A... Ace, get off of me!"

Peter shouted in agreement, "Yeah! Get away from me and Allysia!"

"...You too, rabbit."

Ace protested, "But I don't want to let Peter have you all to himself! He has to learn to share!"

Peter growled at him, "Go jump off a cliff!"

As these two continued a loud, raucous argument, a sudden fire of a gunshot silenced the room into a quiet hush.

"Please stop molesting her in Our presence, you insalubrious louts," Vivaldi ordered them, a small gun poised in her hand to fire another shot. The two men promptly rose back to their feet, helping their victim back up.

Ace then said, "Okay, your majesty! I'll just continue that when you're not around!"

Peter protested, "You certainly will not, fool!"

The queen pulled Allysia from between her bickering subordinates, her gun reverting to its original staff-like state. Vivaldi inquired, "Would you care join Us for a meal? We can hear your stomach grumbling a mile away."

She replied politely, "That's rather kind of you, but I don't think..."

"Why not? I'm not doing anything wrong like you. You just want to do naughty things to her. I just want to play with her for awhile. I promise I won't break her!"

"She is not a toy! Don't talk about her like that!"

"Oh! So you really did plan on doing naughty things to her! I never knew rabbits could be such perverts."

Peter's pocket watch suddenly transformed into a long barreled pistol. "Do you have a death sentence, knight?"

Allysia, who tried her very hardest not to pay attention to their conversation, recanted her decision. "Perhaps something to eat would be nice."

A smile flashed onto the queen's face. "Wonderful! It's a perfect day for breakfast in the gardens. We'll have the servants prepare something immediately."

Lacing a lithe arm around Allysia's, the two young women began walking away, leaving Peter and Ace to their argument.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Please, stop stuffing your face like that. It's not very proper for a young lady," chided the queen as she took a dainty sip of her tea. Allysia paused, spoon retreating from her hungry mouth, as she took the time to chew and swallow. It wasn't her fault she was so hungry. "And elbows off the table, back straight... Dear, must We remind you of proper table etiquette?"

'_Jeez, she's just like Eclaire,_' she inwardly grumbled, fixing her posture and moving her arms to her lap.

Vivaldi nodded her head in satisfaction. "My, it's fascinating to meet yet another foreigner. Allysia, was it?"

"Yes, your majesty."

"What a pretty name. Well, where are you residing, Allysia?"

She pondered the question for a long moment, mulling her response in her mind as she considered all the territories. "Huh. I never gave that much thought into it. I've never been to the Amusement Park yet... Certainly not the Hatter Estate. Perhaps, the tower so far. I was allowed to sleep there the last night."

Vivaldi perked up in interest. "Really? Clover Tower? We're surprised Nightmare was man enough to make such an executive decision himself."

Allysia bit her tongue. '_Oh trust me. He's not._'

"No!" came a cry as Peter raced back towards them. "Allysia should stay with us!"

Allysia scoffed in reply. There was no way she was going to stay anywhere near the White Rabbit. She'd far rather wrestle with that bear earlier than share air with Peter.

"Yeah, Ally! You should stay with us," agreed Ace, materializing beside the hare. "Then you can stay in my room!"

Vivaldi stared at the knight in palpable inquisitiveness while Peter's red orbs glared daggers into his being. "A... Ally?"

Ace nodded his head with a customary smile. "Of course! Friends give each other nicknames, and she's our new friend! It fits, doesn't it, Ally?"

"Actually, that's my nickname from my world. My cousin and mother would always call me that." Allysia laughed at the thought, finding the coincidence rather amusing.

Annoyed that Ace received such a positive reaction, Peter shouted finitely, "Ally-chan isn't staying with you... She's staying with me!"

"Actually neither of you are staying with Allysia. There are spare rooms for guests," reminded Vivalid, sipping her tea. The young girl sighed in relief. After all, in the event she does stay in the castle, there was no way she would be boarding with either male, not after how they treated her.

Her gaze then was attracted to the sky. "Wow, it's afternoon already?"

The regal dark-haired woman replied, "Time moves differently in Clover than your world. It's simply unpredictable, but you would get used to it."

She nodded her head in understanding. "Well in that case, I should get going. I don't want to walk back in the dark."

"Are you sure? You can reside here for the night. We were just going to have Our afternoon tea," offered the queen.

She wasted no time responding, "Thank you for the offer, but no. Perhaps another time." She stood up and curtsied. "Thank you for your hospitality."

As she began walking out, Peter stood with a glum expression on his face while Ace waved his hand. "Bye bye, Ally!"

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Allysia hoped she was going in the right direction. She really, really hoped so. She looked up passed the trees, seeing the sky streaked with soft hues of orange and rosy plum. The sun appeared to a mere orange ball of fire, disappearing to a place far from her line of vision.

She didn't like thinking about walking around in the dark. It wasn't she was scared per se. It was the atmosphere that made her wary. She just felt a strange ominous air, an omnipresent sense of danger.

She dismissed her irrational anxiety as paranoia, she began to settle her thoughts on something less disconcerting.

'_Dreams are strange little things._' Why ever would her mind force her to go through such torture? She had enough reprimanding in real life from Eclaire. She didn't further scolding in a dream.

'_Eclaire..._' Her walk slowed to a contemplative amble. Why hadn't they woken her up yet? How long did it take to get a single deck of cards? She, of course, did remember that even if it did feel like days in a dream, in real life it may have been only a few minutes. Still, it felt like ages.

'_Considering this is a dream, is Vivaldi like my dream version of Eclaire then?_'

They did seem rather similar though they looked nothing alike. The constant scolding for her unladylike behavior was very Eclaire-like. Even the clothes were something Eclaire would wear. The frilly ruffles on her red dress were quite becoming on the queen. She could barely imagine herself in such attire...

She froze in her place, a silent horror besieging her. '_Oh my god... D... Does that mean... I secretly __**like**__ that stuff?_'

How simply terrifying! Did she envy then how Eclaire was dressed and wished she looked as good? A shudder tore through her body at the thought. She felt really pathetic at that moment if that was true...

_Crack!_

Allysia snapped out of her self-pity and perked up. '_What was that?_'

She turned her head around to survey the vicinity. Her blood suddenly ran cold.

Even though night was fast approaching and light was disappearing, she could still make out a figure before her. Black fabric concealed almost every inch of his appearance. All she could see were his eyes, the dangerous, deadpanned gleam of his blue eyes.

She felt her own blue orbs widen with fear, a lump blossoming in her throat. "He... Hello?"

The imposing figure did not utter a word, his gaze intent on her. He took a step forward.

"St... Stay back! Wh... Who a... are you?" She stammered, retrogressing until she felt a tree behind her, blocking her from further movement. The man still continued his advances. Then her eyes caught sight of it.

With what little light remained, she could see the scythe in black, gloved fingers, winking at her with a wicked gleam. The blade was curved and sharp, made out of a substance she had never seen before. It wasn't like the common steel from the weapons she was accustomed to. This one had a certain tint to it, a color she could not recognize. Intricate designs danced all along the glistening blade. It was far too dark to see what exactly they were. She was only able to make out one design.

'_Are... Are those letters?_' Such a sight drew her curiosity. They certainly did seem like two distinct letters from the alphabet. The first was hard to see, but was the last one... a 'G'?

Before she could further scrutinize the sight and determine if her eyes were playing tricks on her, she watched the weapon draw back and slash towards her head.

Lucky for her she was able to react just in time. She ducked down, feeling the scythe swipe the ends of her tendrils and slice the tree with effortless ease.

'_That... That could have been me._' Hearing the tree fall with a resounding thud, Allysia darted forward. '_But why did he try to kill me? What did I do?_'

She didn't ponder the question for very long. Her mind was only intent on doing one thing – **getting away**.

The surrounding air stung her lungs, the incoming chill already piercing her skin. Her feet stomped through the forest debris, leaping over fallen branches and leaves.

Run. That's all she could think of doing. Run like a little rabbit from her predator. Run like her life depended on it. It was a natural, primordial instinct, especially in the face of certain death.

'_And my life really is in danger..._' she thought hastily. If she couldn't escape, Allysia was sure she would die.

'_Come on... Wake up, wake up, WAKE UP!_'

A scream rushed out from her lips when the scythe rushed towards her head. She quickly rolled out of the way, staggering back to a run. She dared not look back, not at her pursuer close behind her, his feet crunching against the sylvan ground.

Suddenly he materialized directly before her, his deathly weapon sending a wide slash towards her.

She barely dodged the assault. The blade managed to produce a large gash on her arm, sticky drops of scarlet streaming down and o to the ground. She cried out in pain, clasping her wound with nervous hands.

_'Pain?_' Such a strange sensation to feel. In dreams, you weren't supposed to feel pain. '_Like how I never felt anything in __**that**__ dream..._'

With a gasp of remembrance, Allysia clumsily tumbled back, tripping over a tree's root.

Unlike before, the feeling in her ankle wasn't just uncomfortable. **It really hurt.** She hastily tried rising to her feet. With a low yelp, Allysia collapsed back down, cursing the unwarranted immobility. Her heart pounded noisily in her ears as she looked up.

Her assailant treaded dangerously towards her, resembling very much like a black panther who had just cornered its prey. His blue orbs were luminous in the waning light, casting a predatory and malevolent glow.

'_It's a dream..._'

Allysia tried rising to her feet again. A stabbing pain rode up the length of her leg, forcing her to stay on the ground.

_'It's a dream...'_

A gasp caught her breath when she saw the man grew dangerously close, his scythe sending a ghastly glow.

_'It's a dream!'_

She felt her whole body freeze as he appeared right over her.

'_What if... this isn't a dream?_' The thought rolled silently into her head, almost sounding in unison with heavy beatings of her heart.

'_What if... This is all..._' The man raised his scythe high into the air. '_...__**Real?**_'

Unlike her dream, she didn't simply wake up. No matter how much she wanted to, she just couldn't.

Then her assailant brought his weapon down onto her, rushing towards her with a terrifying slash.

Allysia screamed.

* * *

**A/N Notes: Le gasp! Cliffhanger~!**

But I wanted to address one little thing. If anyone wonders why our stalker rabbit still seems rather affectionate towards Allysia even though she's not Alice: Well remember that Allysia is said to look like her, and Peter-chan does miss his Alice very much... You do the math. I trust you all are intelligent to figure that much out!

Thanks for reading~


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**Rescue and Retrieval**

Her scream suddenly died at her tongue, fear blocking all her breathing passages. All she could do was stare as the scythe flew towards her, ready to slice right through her skull.

She shut her eyes and braced herself for the impact.

…nothing.

_'Am I dead?'_ Was the figure so benevolent as to give her a swift and painless end? She doubted that, but still...

"Please careful where you swing that. You could seriously hurt someone!"

At the sound of the familiar voice, her heart palpitated a little faster. She looked up, shocked to see the scythe hover inches above her. The only thing that stopped such a frightening weapon from coming into contact with her head was a sword.

"A...Ace?" She breathed out in amazement, gaping at the Knight of Hearts.

"Yep, Ally! I've come to save you!" said Ace.

A gunshot suddenly blasted in her ears, ripping through the black fabric that covered the blue-eyed man's shoulder.

A white-haired rabbit snarled, "Idiot, don't take all the credit! If it weren't for me, you probably would have gotten lost, and Ally-chan would be dead."

Ace merely smirked. The masked man to jump back to evade the dangerous sweep of the knight's sword.

"Sir," began Peter in a deadly octave, pressing his gun to the assailant's temple, "You shall not lay another hand on her while we're here. We suggest you leave..."

"Or else!" Ace placed his sword at the man's neck, ready to decapitate him at a moment's notice.

The masked figure regarded both men with an air of apathy, undaunted by their threats. His cold gaze then locked onto hers - frozen daggers of murderous ice boring into her spheres of warm sapphire.

Every part of her being seemed to freeze, lacking the capacity to even allow air into her lungs. She felt immobilized by this irreconcilable fear, the feeling that her life would be lost in a blink of an eye.

The man finally broke the trance as he dashed out of their range, disappearing in the encompassing shadows of the coming night. She still felt unable to breathe, unable to stop her body quavering.

She had never felt so scared in her life.

"Calm down, Ally. You're safe now," assured Ace with a merry smile, lifting her into his strong arms.

"We're going to take care of you. Nothing is going to hurt you, Ally-chan," Peter crooned melodically, floating somewhere from above her closed lids

'_Safe, I'm safe..._' Her taut muscles slowly relaxed in the knight's arms.

Then she was suddenly swept over by a numbing darkness.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

It felt as if she had just resurfaced from the dark, watery sea. Her chilled skin welcomed the blessed sensation of warmth. Her lungs filled themselves with a deep intake of oxygen.

Was this the land of dreams? No, she had visited the territory more times than she could count and knew she wasn't there. Just where was she?

The dissonance of a loud crash shattered her dreamlike state, arousing her drowsy senses.

"Oops!"

"You imbecile, be quiet! You might wake her!" shouted a familiar tone, causing her muscles to intrinsically cringe. Her brown lashes fluttered open, ignoring the little voice in her head that advised her otherwise.

"Peter?" she cried, her blue eyes locked on his white locks, the smooth profile of his countenance.

He snapped his head towards her, crimson orbs sparkling with euphoria. "Allysia! You're fine!" Without warning, the white rabbit man leapt onto her bed and wrapped his arms affectionately around her neck. "Oh dear, Ally! How worried you made me! It was lucky I came along or else you would've been a goner."

A knight materialized by her bedside, saying, "Hey, I was there too."

Peter simply narrowed his eyes to a glare. "And who cares about you?"

Miraculously liberating herself from Peter's bone crushing embrace, she asked, "Look, I truly appreciate you guys saving me and all, but just why were you there anyway?"

"Her majesty requested us to make sure you safely to Clover Tower safely," the White Rabbit answered.

"Thank goodness I followed the prime minister, or else I would have gotten horribly lost!" said Ace.

"I could have done it myself without you," growled Peter before saying, "Thank god we did. If I ever got my hands on that role holding bastard who tried to hurt you, I swear I would shred him into a million pieces!"

"How do you know it's a role holder?" inquired Allysia.

His explanation came very simply. In this world, there are exactly two kinds of people. There are those who are role holders – important figures in the game with distinguishable features on their countenances – and then those who of lesser importance and deprived of a face.

Allysia nodded her head in understanding, recalling those faceless servants in the Castle of Hearts. Then her mind seemed to evoke the man's piercing blue eyes, those eyes that chilled every fiber of her being.

She shuddered. What sort of role holder would hold such a disdain for foreigners that they would try to kill her? Was it someone she met... or was it a dark figure she had yet been introduced to?

As if reading her thoughts, Peter angrily grumbled under his breath, "It must be one of his spineless lackeys. I knew no good would come from that new territory..."

Inquisition sparked a fire in her oceanic orbs, presenting a question that needn't be conveyed through words.

"Ah, those in the Castle of Diamonds are nothing to worry about. Anyone could have done it. You're just mad because their king called you long-eared mole rat," Ace said with a cheery smile, watching as the prime minister of Hearts twitched at the very reminder.

"I'm a rabbit! How dare that garishly dressed behemoth associate me with such abominable beasts!"

'_So that's the new territory? Castle of Diamonds?_' This was probably the most she had ever heard of the place. Perhaps Ace was right. It certainly didn't make sense for people whom she never met to try to kill her.

Then again, she had never met them before. In a world where weapons appeared from the most mundane of items, danger looming at every corner, she almost considered it as a possibility. Anything was possible in this senseless world.

Just moments before Allysia opened her mouth to question them, her bedroom door swung open.

"Allysia, I'm glad to see you're finally awake," said Nightmare as he waltzed in with Julius and Gray following right behind him. "...and with the rabbit and the knight. Lovely."

"Nightmare," Peter greeted with equal indifference.

"Oh hey there, Julius and Gray!" said Ace, waving his hand to them. "Why are you guys here so soon?"

Julius answered, "Nightmare noticed Allysia were finally awake, and we wanted to come and check up on her."

"And I am still surprised you two are still here." Nightmare's single gray orb observed the two Heart residents with mild interest before turning his gaze back to the girl. "So, Allysia, now that you're awake, perhaps you would entertain one simple question?" Allysia nodded her head.

Overjoyed by such a response, Nightmare turned towards his assistant. Gray cleared his throat and took full liberties to elucidate. "Just where shall you be residing while you stay in Clover? Your wounds may be minor, but they still require attention."

The question settled itself in her thoughts, absorbed into her mind. "Huh… I never thought I had to make a definite decision so soon…"

"Ally-chan should stay with us!" proclaimed Peter.

Nightmare scoffed. "At the Castle of Heart? Don't make me laugh. Why would she desire to stay there with you and your ilk?"

Ace answered, "Well, we were the ones who rescued her so she should stay with us."

"She was coming here to remain the night so it only makes sense she stay here," refuted Gray.

"Guys?" Allysia attempted to raise her voice, but was soon overpowered.

"She's coming with us!"

A nerve began to pulsate at her temple. "Guys…"

"No, she's staying right here!"

"Guys, shut up!" The group of men fell into complete silence, turning to face the young girl. "Don't I have a say in this?"

Julius coolly said, "Of course. Where would you like to stay, Allysia?"

She only had to ponder that question for a singular moment. The answer was clear as day. She could only stay in one place and be free of any, if not all, harassment.

"I'll be staying…"

"With me." That voice – that calm, velvety voice… Allysia thought it could only belong to one man. An infuriating man at that.

She unconsciously rose to her feet, flinging a pointed finger towards the figure, casually leaning against the doorway. "You!"

Gray blinked in surprise. "Really? You wish to board with Mr. Blood Dupre?"

"What? N…" She then gasped, tumbling back onto her bed as a pain permeated throughout her ankle. Gray had immediately come to her aid, assisting the young girl back onto her bed.

Nightmare then scowled, "Why are you here, Blood Dupre? I never invited you to my tower!"

"Oh, I won't be here for very long. I'm just claiming what is mine," was his response, inciting a deeper glare. As nonchalantly entering the room, he said, "But doesn't it make sense? I was the first one to find her so shouldn't she stay under my care?"

Her blue orbs were aflame with aqueous fire. "Hell. No. There is no way I'm going to stay with you."

A harmonic sigh of relief sounded and pervading all throughout the room. Despite her assertion otherwise, Blood retained his stance. His lips quirked into a devious smile. His eyes gleamed with undulating confidence.

"Really? We'll see about that." He then turned his green orbs to the general congregation. "May I please have a private moment with the young lady? It won't take very long."

She scoffed. "Of course it won't take long. I don't plan on changing my mind," Allysia asserted stubbornly, her form remaining defiant and adamant.

Blood met her obstinacy with unruffled grace, withholding an air of confidence and poise. As if in the end, he was going to win.

Allysia merely scoffed at the thought. Nothing he could say or do would change her mind. She refused to remain anywhere near that bloody Hatter. Allysia did not intend on losing this confrontation… no matter how self-assured Blood seemed.

Nightmare finally answered with a sigh. "Just a few moments. We will be close by if you need us, Allysia."

Allysia nodded her head in approval. As the residents of Clover Tower and Heart began to file out of her room, she assured herself she could hold her own against Blood. There was no reason for her to be afraid of him.

The door shut. Only the two figures remained.

'_...no reason at all._'

"My, Allysia, aren't you rather accident prone?" drawled Blood as he approached her bedside, his eyes boldly roaming her general appearance. She refused to submit any discomfort or weakness and maintained her composure. "Twisted ankle, a sliced arm... Danger seems to follow you wherever you go, doesn't it?"

"Just tell me why you're here," she said crisply.

"Straightforward one, aren't you?" Blood still kept that annoying smile on his face. Allysia couldn't figure it out. What did the Hatter have up his sleeve? All she knew was she wanted to punch that mafia boss's grin right off the face. "Are you really against the idea of staying at my mansion?"

Allysia nodded her head. She had never heard anything more horrid in her life.

"Too bad... I thought you would benefit from agreeing to stay with me." He released a dreary sigh, his countenance seemingly dismayed by such a thought.

She dubiously queried, "How so? Insuring my death to arrive sooner?"

The Mafioso ignored her remark and instead presented her with a new question, "When you arrived to Clover, did you bring anything with you?"

Allysia held her breath, her blue orbs expanding. She refused to admit it, to acknowledge that simple fact. Blood's grin widened, seeing that he had struck a nerve.

"Shall I take that as a no? That's be too bad... I would have imagined you would want something as pretty as this."

She gasped. Hanging just inches out of her reach was...

"My locket!" she yelled in shock, lunging her whole body towards it. "Give it back!"

"And you shall..." Blood elegantly sidestepped her attempt, the locket cradled in his gloved hands. "If you agree to stay at my mansion."

Her eyes suddenly went very wide. Her conviction wavered as she dismally stared at her precious, heart-shaped locket.

"I hold your heart captive between my hands. It's your decision if you're willing to do what it takes to get it back."

A curse floated in her mind as she tore her gaze away. What was she to do? Was she to withhold her pride and refuse? Then again, that refusal would entail the loss of something very precious to her. Was she willing to give up something she held so dear to her heart?

Her eyes darkened into the likeness of a torrential tempest, irritation thrashing in her blue orbs. "…Fine. You win."

"Excellent!" With a triumphant grin, Blood fluidly placed the necklace into his pocket and waltzed towards the door. The very moment he opened it, two men toppled down onto the floor. Allysia gently slapped her face at the sight of Peter and Ace. The two quickly rose to their feet, acting as if nothing happened.

'_That has to be one very important reason why I won't stay in Heart Castle._'

"So has she made a decision?" Peter asked, his scarlet orbs glittering with expectation.

"Yes, she has," said Nightmare as regally walked through the door, his visage unreadable.

Triumph playing over his features, Blood turned towards the young brunette, urging her to inform the curious congregation.

Her shoulders went rigid. Her fingers dug into her sheets as Allysia spoke through her clenched teeth, "I'm… I'm going to stay in the Hatter Estate."

Peter wilted in disappointment over her announcement. Ace regarded her with genuine curiosity as did Julius and Gray. Only Nightmare remained completely composed, his countenance deadpan as he studied the cool, calm mafia leader and the irascible, hotheaded girl.

Peter broke the silence. As he ran towards her, he cried, "No! Ally-chan, you mustn't stay with him! I won't let you!"

"And with that, the young lady and I shall be taking our leave."

Moments before Peter could fling his himself atop her unsuspecting person, Blood swept Allysia into his arms, elegantly carrying her out through the door.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

'_Stupid mafia manipulation!_' Her blue sphere glared daggers, desiring for a blazing inferno to burst forth and incinerate that annoying grin on his lips.

Ever since they left the tower, everything remained in relative silence. No words were exchanged. Not like she wanted to speak to him.

"Really, Allysia. Can you please stop staring at me? It's starting to embarrass me," Blood said, looking down at her with luminous triumph gleaming in his green eyes.

The Gale girl released an unladylike snort. "Please stop giving yourself so much credit. Your ego is becoming such an eyesore." Blood chuckled in amusement, inciting a whirl of her blue orbs. "And remind me again why you're still carrying me like this?"

Blood raised a dark brow. "Oh? So you are perfectly capable of walking there yourself? My apologies then for thinking otherwise."

She stammered clumsily before settling again for a snort. "Well, you never gave me a chance to try…"

Again, Allysia felt an annoying rumble reverberated from his chest, stifling the growing need to punch him. Blood noted, "It's excellent to see you still have that sharp sense of humor."

'_Among other things…_'

Blood suppressed the urge to laugh once more, eyeing the irritation shining effervescently over her pale features. He then asked, "So may I inquire how you got yourself into such trouble?"

"Can I ask how you got your hands on my locket?" She countered, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I was the one who asked first. Answer my question, and I shall answer yours."

Her lips contorted into a scowl, mentally cursing the Mafioso with rather unprintable words. She glibly replied, "Oh, just the result of my "good" fortune. As I began walking back from my visit from the Castle of Hearts, I got ambushed and almost killed by some unknown assailant. Probably nothing out of the ordinary in a place like this."

"Oh. Huh." Allysia glanced up and studied his profile. She found his sudden change in demeanor almost fascinating. The smooth planes of his face hardened, devoid of all emotion. She assumed his disposition was from the mention of the castle. Based on Julius's explanation, there was a bitter rivalry between Heart, Hatter, and Amusement Park. His cool, impassive disdain did seem to make sense, she supposed.

She decided to change the subject. "How about my question? Or shall I assume larceny was just part of your conniving master plan?"

At the sound of her voice, Blood snapped out of his daze, turning his green eyes back towards her. "I would never reduce myself to something as despicable as that. Thieves must be one of the lowest life forms in any world. How I came across your necklace is actually very simple.

"Well do you plan on telling me?"

A grin graced his lips. Turns out, when Allysia fainted, the flimsy metal chain somehow came undone and slipped off her neck. Being the gentleman he was, he swiftly grabbed it and kept it in his possession. He planned on giving it back to her once she awoke, but she ran off before he ever had the chance.

'_Yeah, right._' She refused to believe in the sincerity radiating from his face, that air of guiltless innocence. No way was she going to be fooled.

She then shrugged her shoulders. She supposed she only had herself to blame. That old chain was always rather feeble. She didn't know why she kept it. It was only a matter of time before it fell into pieces.

"Out of curiosity, what do you keep inside your heart?" Allysia took a long moment to realize he was referring to her locket. Seeing suspicion swirl over her visage, Blood added, "What's with that face? I would never pry into a young lady's personal belongings without her permission."

Allysia rolled her eyes. '_Oh, sure you're not…_' By the look on his face, the subtle, inquisitive gleam in his eyes, she allowed herself to believe he was being completely honest.

"Even if I did have it in my possession now, there is no way I'm going to show you what's inside," she replied decisively. "Speaking of my locket, when do you plan of giving it back to me?"

"When we reach the mansion, I promise to return it to you."

Allysia released a loud groan. "Why do you even want me to stay in your stupid estate? Do you want to be the one to kill me for my earlier insolence?"

"Why would I do that?" Blood replied with an innocent grin. "I would never harm those placed under my care."

Allysia's countenance remained incredulous. "Right."

"Besides, you seem interesting enough. I've never met a girl with such an incredible right hook."

She suddenly grew grateful for the falling night, thanking the shadows for concealing the light crimson of her cheeks. She mumbled tiredly, "And I'll do it again if I have to…"

Everything between them dissipated into silence once the mansion finally came into view, the windows twinkling like little stars in the growing dusk. Allysia has difficulty keeping her eyes open long enough to see them reach the door. By then a dreamy unconsciousness had overtaken her, swallowing her in darkness.

Meanwhile, once the Hatter stepped into the threshold, he was met with his right-hand hare. "Blood, where have you been?"

"Just retrieving a guest…" Both green and navy blue eyes blinked in surprise as they glanced down to the Hatter's arms. The foreigner had fallen into a deep sleep. "Ah, that's why it was so quiet!"

"Ali… Allysia?" Elliot said in confusion, looking at his boss to provide further elaboration.

He quickly ran after Blood as he carried the sleeping female to the guestroom and spoke with a few maids. The March Hare watched dumbfounded as his superior stepped into the room, placed the sleeping girl gently onto the bed, and laced a necklace around her neck.

After closing the door and leaving the girl to the faceless maids, Elliot gathered enough courage to ask a single question, "Blood, why is Allysia here?"

Blood replied in a deadpanned voice, "This is just an experiment. It's been boring around without Alice. I merely wish to see if this foreigner would make things interesting again."

Elliot nodded his head in vague understanding. "Oh… for a second there I almost I would have almost thought you liked her."

Blood released a low, bemused chuckle. "Of course not, but I can assure you that I am interested in her… for the time being."

"What to do you mean? What happens if she turns out to be boring?" Elliot asked needlessly. He already knew the answer, knowing his boss as well as he did.

"Simple. If the girl turns out to be less interesting than I thought, I'll kill her." replied Blood as he idly adjusted the cuffs of his sleeves. "I always did want to be the first one to take out the first foreigner."

Elliot merely shifted in his place uncomfortably, unsure how to respond.

'_Déjà vu..._' He glanced towards the closed door. '_Sleep tight, kid._'

After all, if Allysia was going to be residing in the Hatter Estate, she needed all the rest she could get.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Morning crept into her room slowly, quietly bleeding through closed curtains. It reached her lids with a gentle caress. Allysia aroused herself from her slumber, stretching her limbs as she opened her eyes.

'_Come on! Why can't all this be a terrible dream… within a dream?_' she mentally whined, frowning as she casted a glance around her surroundings.

She didn't even remember even getting into bed. Perhaps yesterday's events were so taxing on her body that she knocked out and fell asleep.

'_…And I certainly don't remember getting changed._' She mentally prayed that it was the maids that garbed her in a nightgown. She refused to believe that an annoying mafia boss did anything to her. 'But return to me my locket.'

She relaxed herself against the cool downy sheets, running her thumb along her small pendant. She was pleased to know that Blood was one to keep his word.

Suddenly, the door slowly creaked open. Allysia snapped her eyes shut and fell completely still. It didn't matter who was coming through the door. She just wasn't mentally prepared to see anyone at the moment. She certainly wanted to feign sleep if Blood Dupre was checking on her.

She listened as the door finally opened. The patter of footsteps creaked against the hardwood, drawing nearer to her bedside… until there was silence once more.

Was she just hearing things? Was it all just her overactive paranoia?

Allysia's eyes snapped open when there was a sudden weight atop her, arms wrapping themselves around her person.

"Good morning, onee-chan!" the twins greeted her in perfect unison.

Allysia felt relief surge through her systems, her blue orbs staring at the innocent two children. "Good morning, guys. Why are you here so early in the morning?"

"Boss and newbie-hare had to do some work today," began Dee, his blue orbs sparkling.

Dum added, "And they put us in charge of watching out for you! We promise to take good care of Allysia!"

"Especially since Boss told us you're still not well."

Allysia nodded her head in acknowledgement, mentally extolling she would be rid of Blood for even a short period of time.

Dum cheered happily, "Come on, onee-chan! You have to get changed and come out!"

His brother added, "We want to play with you!"

Allysia wearily nodded her head in consent, shooing them off with a languid wave of her hand. Once the twins left her presence and she properly changed, Allysia rejoined them. She asked, "So, what are we going to do today?"

Tweedle Dee and Dum pondered that question for a moment, looking at the other as they devised the day's activities.

Suddenly they fell completely still, sending a cursory glance around their surroundings.

"…Someone's here." They grumbled under their breath, eyes narrowing in expectation.

Just as Allysia was going to open her mouth to question them, a chill ran up the length of her spine. A single breath whispered into her ear. "Boo."

Allysia and the twins jumped in surprise, Allysia's poor heart beating wildly. The twins merely narrowed their eyes into a leer. "Stupid cat! Don't sneak up on us like that!"

"Well that's your fault for letting your guards down!" The pink-haired feline snickered. His golden eyes then regarded Allysia's form in curiosity. "Say, who's the chick?"

Dee informed him cheerfully, "This is our new friend!"

Dum whispered, "She's actually a foreigner!"

Boris gasped in surprise. "No way! Another one?"

"… I guess. The foreigner's name is Allysia Gale," she replied with a irritated twitch of her brow. "Who might you be?"

Boris displayed a rather toothy grin as he greeted her warmly, "My name's Boris Airay! Nice to meet ya, Allysia!"

"Boris, do you have any ideas what we should do today? Dum and I are in charge of supervising her, and we have no idea what to do!" whined the blue-garbed boy.

The cat mulled that question for a brief moment. He snapped his fingers. "I know! You all should come to the Amusement Park! You haven't been there yet, have you?" Allysia shook her head. Boris purred in contentment. "Excellent! You have to come and see it! It's loads of fun!"

Before Allysia could offer a reply, the twins grabbed hold of both her arms. "Let's go, onee-chan!"

The brunette allowed the three of them to lead her forward, her heart heavy with distress. After all, their definition of fun was certainly different from hers.

'_You're going to be fine,' she dismally assured herself. 'I hope._'

* * *

**A/N Notes:** This chapter was originally longer, but I decided to save the next stuff for the next chapter. This would have been way too long if I did.

I'm kinda excited for what I have planned for the next chapter. Not only because the Amusement Park is finally going to be introduced, but there are also going to be a few new characters...

Regardless how this chapter turned out...

Thanks for reading~


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

**Blood Diamonds**

"You ready?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

"Are you positively sure you're ready?"

"Yes, I am already, Boris! How many times must you ask me?" Allysia insisted, her stance perfectly steadfast.

Dee worriedly said, "I don't know… she didn't handle the test very well."

"Well, we did far worse when we did it!" Dum assured. "Go ahead, Boris! Do it again!"

"Yeah! Bring it on. I can totally handle it," she said confidently.

"Alright…" Boris shrugged her shoulders and cleared his throat. His countenance suddenly became completely impassive once liquid gold locked onto cool sapphires. "Hello there. My name is Gowland."

The twins slapped their hands onto their mouths, their gaze fixated on Allysia's form.

For several moments, she remained perfectly unperturbed, staring at the Cheshire cat with a grin on her face.

The twins sighed in relief. "See? Look, she's perfectly fine."

Boris silenced them with a raise of his hand, scrutinizing her with his meticulous gold eyes. Moments crept by these two continued this long staring match, their visages seemingly still intact. Boris's pink brow quirked up.

Finally, Allysia's lips began to tremble, low whimpers building in the back of throat.

Soon, she could hold it no longer.

"Ha ha! _**Mary Gowland!**_ That's the stupidest name I've ever heard!" Allysia choked out in the midst of her hysteria.

Boris merely sighed and smirked at her reaction. The twins couldn't help, but laugh as well. "Fail!"

"Oh, come on, boys! How can you not laugh at that? It's almost impossible!" she said, slowly placating herself.

"I know, but you have to try. The old man would flip if you called him that or laughed at him for no reason. That would mean someone told you and that would almost automatically mean me," said Boris.

The red-eyed child said, "Then you shouldn't have told her."

"Hey, thanks to your boss, everyone in Clover knows. It would only be a matter of time before she found out," Boris said indifferently. He gently patted Allysia on the shoulder. "As long as you hold in that laughter as long as you just did, I think we'll all be alright."

Allysia smiled in triumph, pleased by that small accomplishment (especially since it seemed pivotal to her survival).

"Come on, onee-chan! Let's go!"

As they walked passed the large, colorful gate and inside the park, Allysia gasped in pure amazement. The air resounded with sonorous screams and laughter. Rides of all shapes and sizes materialized from either side of her – a towering Ferris wheel, the dizzying teacups, the gut busting twists of the roller coaster, and so many more rides that she had never seen before.

"I haven't been to the Amusement Park in ages…" she breathed out, her ultramarine eyes alight with wonder.

The three companions chuckled at the brunette's amazement, commencing to walk about the park.

Her senses were nearly overwhelmed by the encompassing stimuli. The air was teeming with the thrill and amusement. Her tongue nearly salivated at the scent of sweet and sugary confections. Her eyes… oh dear god, her poor eyes!

Allysia faltered at the sight of two glaring yellow figures – one a faceless servant while the other stared from behind a pair of glasses.

"Hey now. Boris, who's the little lady you got there?" the man asked, gazing at her with bright, green orbs.

With a wide grin, Boris cordially introduced, "Old man, this is Allysia Gale. Allysia, this here is the owner of the Amusement Park, Gowland."

The twins held their breath, bright crimson and aqua staring in anxious anticipation.

Her lips twitched into a wide smile and greeted him warmly, "Ah, it's so nice to meet you! Boris has told me much about you." The twins released a relieved breath, giving each other a high five. Success!

Gowland's grin widened. "Ah! Another foreigner! It's very nice to meet you… oh wow. It's incredible. Your resemblance to the last one is uncanny."

'_Alice…_' An unprecedented weight unfurled in her chest and a fleeting tightness appeared in her throat. Still, she retained a composed front, a smile on her lips.

Her reverie was shattered when a warmth curled around her neck.

"Well, we'll be going, old man. I've been wanting to show the new ride to Allysia," said Boris with a golden wink.

She released a breath and gave him a grateful nod. Just as the four started to walk away, Gowland's voice stopped them. "Hey, wait! I wanted to do something special to welcome her to Clover!"

The cat and the twin's countenances blanched into a ghostly white. "No, old man, that's not..."

"Oh, Allysia! You seem like one that appreciates fine music." Noticing Gowland glance over to her with a hopeful sparkle in his eyes, she gingerly nodded her head. "I knew it! Well, you certainly would love this. I am going to play a song for you!"

Before any of them could cry out in protest, the old man already began his performance, strumming heartily against the taut strings of his violin.

Allysia had never heard such a noise. An ache threatened to tore her skull asunder and release all the contents of her jellified mind. Her eardrums trembled underneath the horrific weight of the battering noise. Dear heavens! She had never heard anything so atrocious in her life!

Once Gowland began to play, it seemed as if the entire world around her was muted to a low murmur. The twins cringed in pain, clasping their innocent ears. Boris's feline appendages grew taut, wincing as he attempted to lift the god saving gun up and forever silence the source of such unending torment.

Allysia didn't know how much more she could take of it.

"That's enough..." She felt her lips move, but no words seemed to come forth, dying at the hands of the demonic violinist. "_That's enough, Mary Gowland!_"

The air suddenly fell completely stagnant, hushing after a discordant, final note.

With a sigh of relief, Allysia glanced over to her companions. '_Why are they staring at me like that?_'

The twins stared at her with unspeakable disbelief. Boris's gold orb regarded her with shock. Even the faceless servant stared at her with surprise.

"W... What did you just say?"

Allysia's sapphire gaze turned towards Gowland, his expression hard and unreadable.

"Oh. I said, 'That's enough, M...'-" She slapped her mouth once she realized her fatal mistake. Boris threw his head back and stifled a groan.

Gowland still heard her. "Boris... You didn't do just do what I think you did?"

"Of course not, old man!" Boris said innocently. He hastily whispered to Allysia, "Run."

She simply blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

"Oh, really? You didn't?" His expression darkened, the atmosphere thickening with his very aura. "Then, Boris, tell me this."

"Onee-chan, seriously. You have to run," the twins urged her, watching the Amusement Park owner warily.

"B... But why?"

Her answer appeared when Gowland's violin transformed into a machine gun. "**Why the hell does she know my full name is Mary Gowland?**"

The air was showered by a rain of bullets.

"Allysia...!"

"I'm already gone!" The brunette barely dodged the shower of deadly metal, running as far away as the crazed man as she could and escaping from the Amusement Park into the depths of the forest.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Perhaps, Allysia had taken them far too literally. Maybe she shouldn't have ran so far. She should have had enough sense to stop at the edge of the forest. She would have been safe from the bullets.

'_If I hadn't gotten so carried away, I wouldn't have gotten so lost._' She shrugged her shoulders as she dismally sat herself upon a fallen tree trunk. She stared at her surroundings. '_Just what kind of forest is this?_'

She was already uncoordinated as is. She didn't need to be in a place with countless signs pointing in all sorts of directions. Doors of all shapes and sizes were scattered throughout the forest.

Allysia hoped they would find her soon. Dear, she didn't like the idea of being alone… again.

"What is _that?_" At the sound of another human, Allysia perked up and raised her gaze.

Her heart flew to her throat; her bright, blue expanses widened into broad plates.

Her loneliness certainly was cured. She was totally surrounded… by people without faces.

'_I know I didn't want to be alone,_' she thought, her mouth running dry as she eyed the congregation, all holding some sort of weapon in their hands, '_But this was certainly not what I had in mind._'

One of them finally came to a realization. "Oh! I've heard of this one. This must be the foreigner they were talking so much about."

"But what are we to do? Should we let her be? She's irrelevant to our current objective," one fretted.

"No! Our 'lord and lady' may have already brainwashed her to work for their side and spy on us. She deserves to be silenced," another growled, raising a deadly revolver.

"But she is a foreigner. If she is who they think she is, her death would harm us more than it does him. We need her alive," one faceless reasoned while another hissed otherwise.

As the surrounding people continued to bicker, the brunette remained completely dazed. Just what in the world were these people talking about? Who were they referring to? Does the mysterious person have any connections with the one who assaulted her?

A sharp voice sliced through her subconscious, speaking shrilly, "So, if she's truly so blessed by destiny, she couldn't possibly die anytime soon right?"

A light murmur dispersed through the crowd like wildfire. Her abdomen performed nervous back flips. "So if she is what our lord and lady believe she is, by no means fate should let any harm befall upon her."

Allysia swallowed hard, not at all liking the direction of this argument. She tested her ankle and lightly applied pressure. She mentally cursed the dull, gradual pain. It was not as bad as it was yesterday, but she could not endure it long enough to properly escape.

All breath escaped her lips as a knife appeared by her neck, the cold steel chilling her flesh. The faceless person smiled. "Don't worry, dear. If you really do die, just consider yourself lucky that this death was at least quick and painless. If he got his hands on you… oh, you would _wish_ you were dead. The torture would be _unimaginable_."

Allysia was rendered completely speechless. She watched defenselessly as the knife drew back and flew right towards her… to only swipe the air before her face.

Her mouth fell wide open as her attacker crumbled to the floor, his whole body cleaved in half.

Everyone fell into a state of silence. Gasps flew from the faceless's lips. Even Allysia struggled to catch her breath, rendered flabbergasted at the very presence of the new figure.

The man nearly towered over her, his long, light blue overcoat draped over his tall frame. An insignia with a large diamond and an elegant 'D' was stitched into the blue fabric of his jacket. Long white boots were trimmed with blue, unsoiled by the surrounding dust. Short locks of cerulean swayed in the breeze, gently dripping over the startling hue of his eyes.

Her whole body tensed, her muscles convulsing at the horrifying memory. Everything seemed to freeze when her own orbs stared into those cold, blue eyes. Her sore tendons ached, her hand instinctively touching her bandaged her arm. Was it possible? Was she staring at the man – role holder – who…?

The moment was broken when a loud cry ripped through the air. A faceless person began to charge towards him, waving a wooden club in his hand. In one fluid movement, the blue-eyed man turned, swiped one sword at the flimsy wood, and then followed his attack with his other sword. It cut the man diagonally down his shoulder.

Such cruel ferocity... The heartless indifference in his eyes...

Chills ran down the length of her spine.

After a second person had fallen, the group suddenly charged into action. Guns were shot. Daggers were swung. All were attempts to try and even touch him.

The man was far too quick. With each twist of his white gloved hands, several would fall to the forest floor.

Allysia tried her hardest to breathe, focus her frazzled senses. All she could do was stare, not at the carnage before her, but at the blades.

They were unlike anything she had seen before. They were not cold, metalic steel. They were crafted with an almost crystallized blue. The translucent material surely did not seem as feeble as one would have expected it. It proved very strong while one blade chopped through someone's legs.

An image flashed in her mind – the long, cool blade of the scythe seemed almost transparent in the waning light…

She snapped herself out of her daze, awakening herself to a nightmarish reality. Dead bodies were strewn all across the forest floor. Heads were decapitated. Limbs were cleaved from their sockets. An iron odor stung her nostrils, ranking the earth with a dark crimson.

The only ones who remained alive were the man and she. He slowly turned his heads towards her, fresh drops of blood staining his pale cheeks.

'_Run._'

Pivoting on the soles of his boots, the man turned towards her and began his advance. His face remained completely expressionless.

'_Run._'

At the slightest pressure, her ankle cried in agony, as if suddenly remembering the gruesome memory.

'_I have to run!_' It was no use. Allysia found herself completely paralyzed by the young man's hard gaze, frozen expanses of ice chilling the warm depths of her oceanic orbs. She held her breath. No one spoke a word.

Finally, the man sheathed his two swords and crossed his arms over his chest. His eyes narrowed in scrutiny. "Just who are you?"

Allysia lacked enough air to answer. By no means was she expecting a question.

The man grunted in light annoyance. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm currently unarmed. Stop being so scared. Just please answer my question."

There was silence. The man barely stifled another groan, his impassive gaze firmly intent on her form. Allysia swallowed a mouthful of air. Her voice cracked as she supplied, "A... Allysia. Allysia Gale."

The man's eyes blinked, flickering with an emotion that came far too fleetingly for her to properly recognize. The man took a large step back. "The foreigner... Allysia, I must suggest you leave now. This place is not safe for someone like you."

In normal circumstances, Allysia would have rolled her eyes, finding that statement far too obvious to be said. Now, she was completely frozen, clinging to her suspicion and distrust.

The man clicked his tongue. "Hn. So stubborn. Allysia, really. I do suggest you go now before..."

"**Saaaayyyeerr!**"

At the high-pitched squeal, the man visibly cringed, glaring at an object resonating behind her. Struck by her curiosity, she slowly turned around. A young girl, who seemed only a year or two his junior, trotted towards the young man. Her short, white dress complemented well with her pale skin. The blue trimming accentuated the startling blue hue of her short hair and eyes.

"Sayer, how could you leave me and take all the fun? We were sent on this mission together!" whined the shorter female, her heeled, white boots stomping towards the knight.

"I had my reasons, Chalice," Sayer replied sternly. "One of them included you being too slow."

"You're so mean, onii-chan!" The young female pouted and childishly crossed her arms. Sayer rolled his eyes. "This seems to always happen. You going off and doing all the fun stuff, leaving me no...?" Her rant fell at her lips, her bright blue eyes widening once she finally acknowledged Allysia's presence. "Sayer, who's the girl?" she asked, her voice deadpan.

"Allysia," Sayer replied curtly on the Gale's behalf, shooting his sister a curious look. "She's a foreigner."

Realization sparked in her navy blue irises. Chalice trotted closer to Allysia, indifferently studying the brunette's being. She took a single step back, placed her hand on her hip, and scoffed. "You can't be serious. This chick really is the foreigner?" She watched her brother nod his head. She barely stifled a groan, her nose creasing with light wrinkles. "Do we really have to learn love that? But she's just so… so… **plain looking**."

Allysia's face was wiped of all emotion. She incredulously gawked at the girl. She wasn't serious. She couldn't be serious.

"The girl can't even dress herself in something a little more flattering."

'_…if I didn't know better, I would have thought this chick was really insulting me._' An annoyed warmth crept up the length of Allysia's neck; her nerves pulsated from her temples.

Allysia spoke through clenched teeth, "I never asked you to like me, let alone 'love' me… or my clothes. Besides, these were a gift from Eclaire."

"You are too funny! Getting fashion advice from a pastry…" Chalice guffawed at the statement, almost bursting into hysterical laughter. "You truly must be a foreigner if you don't even know that important little fact!" Inquisition flooded into Allysia's eyes. The blue-haired female condescendingly beamed. "It's almost proven that everyone would fall in love with a foreigner at one point of their lives or another. If you're this new, then you must have no idea who we are."

Allysia refused to respond, her gaze firm on Chalice's challenging stance. Curiosity was blatant on the brunette's face, but she refused to yield and admit it.

With a light scoff, Chalice turned her imperious gaze to Sayer. The young man released a weary sigh and cleared his throat. "Allysia, allow me to offer formal introductions. We are both knights from the Castle of Diamonds."

Allysia gasped. '_The new territory…_'

"My name is Sayer," the knight added, gesturing a gloved hand to the female beside him. "And this is Chalice."

Allysia nodded her head in acknowledgement, watching as Chalice studied her in silence. Her navy orbs sparkled as a devious idea formed in her mind.

"You know, onii-chan, this is the first time we've ever seen a foreigner," said Chalice, her eyes vibrant with mischief. Sayer's gaze hardened, eyeing his sister warily. She reached up and fumbled with the diamond pin in her hair. "Perhaps, I can just play around for awhile…"

Before the pin could slide out of her hair, a hand slapped her hand away.

"Stop it, Chalice," scolded Sayer. "You are not to touch a single hair on the foreigner's head. It's his majesty's orders.

She whined, "You're such a killjoy! I would have thought his majesty and you would be relieved if I…"

"Chalice…" Sayer said with a reproachful growl, his orbs hardening into frozen ice.

She released a submissive harrumph. "Fine, I won't! Really, you're no fun at all. I was just really pumped up for this mission and want to vent in some way."

"Well, perhaps you shouldn't have taken your sweet time and be prompt for once."

"You try doing what I have to do! It requires a certain amount of patience and stealth – two qualities you seem to lack."

Sayer rolled his eyes. The two knights continued to fight and bicker, carrying a semblance to most siblings. Allysia quickly lost interest in their argument and founder herself attracted to a sight behind them.

There, lying in the midst of death and blood, remained one whole body, limbs stained with a rosy crimson. A finger twitched. The brunette raised a brow at the curious sight. It was impossible that he was so careless. Was the person really…?

Her question was answered when the faceless man's bloody hand raked the cold earth and pushed his torso up. Without muttering a single word, he was on his feet.

Her mouth slacked in shock. She watched as the man dragged his feet across the dirt floor. He quickly swiped a fallen sword off the ground, its blade gleaming with dark sanguine. The man continued to trudge forward in a labored, yet determined pace.

Allysia felt a scream slowly build at the back of her throat when the man finally grew close the unaware knight. The sword was poised and ready to thrust into Sayer's back…

_**Bang!**_

The sword dropped to the ground. The man stood immobile with a small, gaping hole in his forehead. Allysia turned her attention away from the sight to stare at the shooter.

Chalice stood firmly in her place, a small pistol poised in her delicate hands. Her blue locks swayed freely in the wind, cascading down and covering nearly half of her face.

She flinched when Chalice fired another shot. The body fell with a low thud. Even though the man was surely no longer part of the living, bullets continued to pelt his body.

The dead body was not the sight that horrified her. It was the wide smile on Chalice's face, the nearly manic gleam shining in the knight's one, visible orb.

Sayer finally spoke up. "Chalice, that's enough. He's dead. Stop wasting ammunition."

With a grin still on her face, Chalice obeyed and ceased fire. The silvery pistol reverted to its harmless, diamond shape.

Chalice placed the pin back into her hair and extolled, "Oh, onii-chan, you're so good to me! You really did save one for me after all!"

"I don't understand why you're so excited about it. It's not like this is a game," Sayer scolded her. He tiredly shrugged his shoulders, seeing Chalice remain perfectly unrepentant and cheerful. "Just come on. We must report our success to his majesty."

Chalice sighed and apathetically nodded her head. Sayer turned his attention to the female bystander. "Good bye, Allysia. I hope our paths will cross again."

"Especially to meet our king! He's been dying to meet you… I can't understand why though." Chalice remedied her harsh voice with a smile and added, "Now you be careful now! This place can get very dangerous if you aren't careful enough."

Allysia merely sat in a daze and watched the Diamond knights disappear in the surrounding forest.

She swallowed a mouthful of air, just realizing the oxygen deficit in her lungs. Her hands shook slightly as her mind tried to process the events. It was all too much to take in one sitting. She wasn't sure what was more terrifying – watching a young man killing a large mass of people without blinking an eye, or a girl shooting someone to death with such a smile on her face.

'_This place is getting crazier and crazier..._' She rubbed her throbbing temples. '_And to think, those two were only the knights..._'

A startling realization arose in her mind. Even if these two were the first she had ever seen from the Castle of Diamonds, they were only role holding representatives. She still had no idea who exactly was their king.

Her mind suddenly broke from its reverie and returned her to the gore before her. She gasped for air, suppressing the bile that arose from her throat. She needed to get out of there. She needed to clear her spinning head of such incoherent thoughts.

Shakily rising to her feet, Allysia wobbled away, trying not to stare at the disconcerting scene around her.

* * *

**A/N Notes:** Yay! More OCs and the Amusement Park! What story would be without Gowland and his 'excellent' musical skills?

Again, I cut this chapter short because it would have been way too long if I hadn't. Any questions on the Castle of Diamonds territory is addressed in the next chapter (which is basically my explanation why there's two.)

Thanks for reading~


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**Joker**

'_This place keeps getting more and more insane_,' she whined as she sat on the stump, breathing in the normalcy of the surrounding forest. Her head felt as if it was pounding, beating in unison to the palpitations of her heart. She roughly massaged her temples in futile hopes that would erase her memory of the gory sight.

'_Tch. Like that's possible…_' Even though now she was far away from the scene, death clung to her like a second skin. The metallic scent of blood burned her senses, almost even evident on the tips of her tongue. '_I just hope Boris or the twins find me… I'm not sure __how much more of this forest I can take._'

She groaned at the futility of the thought and dropped her weary head into her hands. Of course, with her wonderful fortune, her wish certainly would be answered – just not in the way she expected.

"Hello there!" At the sound of the voice, Allysia tentatively raised her head, half expecting a random assailant to appear and point a gun directly at her face.

Aqua orbs met only a singular red wine orb. His other eye was concealed with a dark eye patch. Allysia screamed in surprised at such uncomfortable proximity, fell from her wooden perch, and landed right on her back. "Oof!"

"Miss, are you alright?" the young man asked, studying her fallen form with a concerned eye.

She, in turn, stared at him, assessing his current form. A fairly built body, draped with dark, exotic fabric… There did not seem to be any weapons on his immediate person. That didn't mean he was harmless though.

She collected her composure and jumped to her feet. Blue orbs narrowed in suspicion. "Just who are you?"

The red-haired male blinked at the abruptness of her inquiry. "My, you surely are a friendly young lady. Answering my question with another question... I always did prefer the conventional 'hello' as a form of greeting."

"Cut it out! It's been a very long day," she shouted an octave louder than she liked. "I almost became deaf, almost died for the second time since I got here, and was rescued by two crazy knights! I have no patience for that kind of crap, clown!"

Absorbing her sudden declaration, the young man's mouth curved in bemusement. "My. Eloquent as well." He released a low laughter as irritation flowed into Allysia's features. "Well, for starters, my name is not clown. You may call me Joker."

'_Joker?_' Her mind was besieged with a nagging sense of familiarity. She swore she heard that name from somewhere once before. Was it from her mother's novel? Even if by the off chance it was, she just could not remember how… and if that reference was in a good or bad way.

"I really should be offended by such unprecedented hostility." The sound of Joker's voice extricated her from her musings, actuating a perplexed look. "Here I came from my lovely stroll to see if the young damsel is alright, and she repays my compassion with animosity. I'm almost hurt."

"Well can you blame me? This so-called 'damsel' had to deal with too much insanity for one day." Allysia tiredly wilted back down onto the stump, sighing at the thought.

Approaching her desolate form, Joker inquisitively asked, "And you said it was partially due to two knights. You didn't mean the Knights of Diamond?" The foreigner nodded her head. His eye bulged in astonishment. "Fascinating… and you're still alive? I'm surprised they yielded to a foreigner."

"Why do you say that?"

A knowing grin danced over his lips. "Well, have you seen them? I doubt they struck you as the most benevolent people in this world."

A shiver tore through Allysia's body, her mind fleetingly evoking the gory scene.

"And to think I've yet to meet the king," she mumbled softly and asked in a louder voice, "Just what is the king like?"

Joker remained completely still, mulling her question carefully in his mind.

First, his hand flew to his mouth to stifle a loud burst. Then his shoulders began to quaver. It wasn't noticeable at first, but his trembling grew more pronounced with each passing second.

She then quickly realized that Joker was laughing. Her brows knitted together. "I don't understand. What's so funny?"

"Oh, don't mind me! I'm just thinking of something. That's all!" replied Joker as he calmed his hilarity, waving his hand in a dismissive fashion. He cleared his throat before continuing. "Ah, the king, the king… how must I describe that king? All I can say he is quite the character. I can't possibly describe him. I'm sure you'd definitely appreciate his company once you finally meet him."

"I surely hope not…" Allysia grumbled softly under her breath. If she thought Sayer and Chalice were bad, she can't imagine what the King of Diamond would be like. The foreigner shivered at the thought.

She jumped. Her heart accelerated at an almost inhuman pace at a sudden burst of a raucous laughter. "Ha ha! You're such a wussy baby if you're scared of that guy. Man the hell up already."

Affronted, she snapped her head towards the red-haired male and shouted, "Hey! I'm no such thing! Don't you dare insult me like that."

With a confused blink of his scarlet eye, Joker defended, "But I never uttered a word."

Allysia insisted otherwise.

A few more moments continued in relative silence. Joker gawked at the young girl who, in turn, sneered at him with a scornful glare. Realization soon lighted his orb as he released a breath of understanding. "Oh! I see now. You never heard me say anything. It's actually my friend here."

Allysia's gaze lowered, staring a white, petite mask hanging off his waist. Her eyelashes fluttered. "Eh?"

"…What are you looking at?"

Allysia jumped back. Her mouth slackened and released a surprised gasp. "Oh my god! It speaks!"

"Damn right I can!" the mask harshly exclaimed. "So why the damn hell are you cowering over a person you never met before? So pathetic…"

"Why don't you come out and just say that to my face?" she growled.

"I freakin' am, you blind dumbass, like I even want to be out there in person in front of such a plain looking girl like you."

Her eyebrow gave an irritated twitch. She jabbed a finger at the mask. "You're so lucky I can't punch you directly in the face."

"Ooh! So scared of you and your wussy punches!" The mask scoffed. "Might as well punch this guy here if it'll make you feel better. We have the same face after all."

Her blue orbs raised and looked at the young man. She queried, "You do?"

The red-haired clown sighed and flaccidly nodded his head. "I suppose it would be even stranger if I said we also shared the same name."

Interest glowed in her aqueous eyes. "You do?" Again, Joker tiredly nodded his head. "So… it's kind of like you both are identical twins."

Joker replied, "Sort of. It's just only one of us can stay out in the duration of the game. That's the rule!"

Allysia nodded her head in confusion. She doubted she could wrap her head around such confusing rules even if she tried. It seemed better to accept things as they are rather than question the complexities any further.

Before any more words could be exchanged, a sound burst through the silence.

_Rustle…_

"What was that?" asked Allysia, eyes expanding with alarm.

"It seems we have a guest…" Joker mumbled in an almost incoherent murmur. His visible crimson orb casted a cursory glance around their general surroundings. He the clapped his hands together in a decided fashion and turned on his heel. "Well then! I must be off!"

As the clown began to walk away, Allysia cried, "Wait! Where are you going?"

"Just continuing my stroll, my dear. Don't worry. We shall meet again," Joker answered, taking her hand and bestowing a brief kiss. "Good bye, Allysia."

"Wait…" Only a breeze answered her. In a blink of an eye, Joker had disappeared. "Strange… how did he know my name?"

She pondered that oddity for a few moments. She swore she never gave it to him. She didn't remember mentioning it at all. How was it he knew?

The brunette was torn from her thoughts when a sudden weight appeared on her back, warm arms wrapping themselves around her general person.

"Hello, chu!" a voice greeted her warmly, brilliant emerald orb staring into her blue ones, orange locks tickling her face.

"Um, hello?" she replied tentatively, staring at the odd mouse like person. "Nice to meet you?"

"Yay! It's nice to finally meet the new foreigner too, chu! I was getting scared by all that noise and wanted to check it out. I'm so glad I did, chu!" the humanoid mouse said merrily.

"Yeah… who are you?"

With a bright smile, the mouse introduced himself as Pierce Villiers, a humble resident of the Amusement Park. Boris and Gowland had informed them that a little foreigner was lost in the woods, and he ran off to search for her all by himself. His grin widened, burying his orange head into the side of her neck. "I'm just happy now that you're all mine, chu!"

"Bless you?"

"No! You're all mine, chu!"

Allysia quickly corrected the red-haired man, "Look, mouse. I belong to no one, and… what's a chu?"

Pierce informed her in a matter-of-factly tone, "Chu is mouse's chu. What more must I say, chu?"

She nodded her head in feigned acknowledgement, refusing to question him on the subject any further. "Right… Well, can you please let me go?"

His hold on her neck only grew tighter as he whined, "No! I don't want to! I found you and you're mine, chu, and I want to hug you!"

She thought all he wanted was to suffocate her, seal that valve that allowed air to reach her lungs. The urge to slap the mouse grew exceedingly stronger when he continued his conquest to capture all of her space, crossing boundaries that were her comfort zone. She especially grew immobile when she noticed his face was closing in on her own…

His whole body tensed as Pierce drew back, his once cheerful expression evaporating into blank, white sheet. The whole air felt stagnant, thickening with the coming presence of an ominous force. Just who was it? What could cause such fear into the little mouse's heart? How much more terror must Allysia withstand?

Allysia quickly realized it could only be one creature, the mouse's most hated enemy. A dark shadowy figure arose from the forest depths, skulking behind them. The dark figure then raised two deathly sharp, silvery objects into the air.

Pierce glanced back and screamed. "No! No! Stay away from me, you scary cat!" He sprinted into a run. A familiar, pink cat then sprinted after the poor mouse with his knife and fork in hand.

Fear dissipated from her systems, replaced only a sense of incredulity. This day could not get any stranger.

Just as the cat had finally cornered Pierce, who was on the verge of breaking out into tears, Allysia jumped in between them. "I'm in no mood for a stupid game of cat and mouse. There is no way you're going to eat this mouse, Boris," she said sternly, arms outstretched to defend Pierce from further advances. The cat pouted, considering other strategies to get around the young girl and reach Pierce.

The mouse peaked out from behind her and stuck out his tongue, boasting his victory. Boris's golden orb narrowed into a leer, striking fear into the dormouse's fragile heart.

Finally, the Cheshire cat grunted in annoyance and crossed his arms over his chest. "Fine. I wasn't hungry anyway." Pierce beamed, and Allysia shrugged her shoulders. "But I've been looking for you everywhere, Ally. Where have you been?"

Allysia shuddered in response. "You don't want to know."

Boris released a submissive breath and did not press her any further. "Well, Gowland finally calmed down. It's safe. We can go back."

"Good... Sorry about my verbal blunder. I hope Gowland didn't get too mad at you."

Boris coolly assured her, "Ah, it's nothing! Old man is just full of hot air, all bark and no bite. I didn't get hurt."

"Gowland reamed Boris out! I never heard him yell so loudly," exclaimed Pierce, receiving a rather hateful glare from the feline.

"Shut up, mouse!" snarled Boris.

Allysia rolled her eyes and raised her gaze to the darkening sky. "Well, it's rather late. Perhaps I should head straight back to the mansion before it gets really dark."

Pierce whined in protest, "No! You can't leave, chu! I just met you!"

"…Um, perhaps I can swing back there to pick up the twins then walk back?" suggested Allysia, nervously staring into the mouse's watery, green orbs.

"Yay! I get to be with you a little longer! You're my new best friend, chu!" The red-haired mouse leapt for joy, linking his arms around hers. "Come on, Ally-chan! Let's get going!"

Allysia had no choice but to comply. The little dormouse had already dragged her forward, indifferent to the fact they were leaving a certain Cheshire cat behind. Liquid gold glared at the back of the mouse's green jacket, regretting his decision of earlier mercy.

Boris shouted, "Hey! Wait for me!"

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Oh, Allysia! I'm so sorry! I hope you didn't get hurt!" Gowland apologized for the hundredth time since she returned to the park, nearly ready to fall to his knees and beg for forgiveness.

"Gowland, it's alright. It's my fault for calling you that," she replied… for the hundredth time.

"But I feel terrible. I was always sensitive about my name, but I never reacted that badly!" Gowland sharply glared at the Airay, who snorted at such a statement.

"Look, I'll make it up to you! I'll give you a lifetime pass for free so you can come back here anytime you want! How's that sound?"

"That's too kind of you. You don't have…"

"Nonsense," the park owner interjected. "I want to, especially after today's current string of misfortune. Oh, it must be karma or something!"

Her curiosity was piqued. "String of misfortune?"

Boris roughly patted her on the back. "Sorry, Ally, but the ride I wanted to show you suddenly broke down. What a drag…" He sighed in dismay.

Pierce interjected, "That's so weird! It worked perfectly all those times prior!"

"What can I say? First few moments, it works great. The next few moments, we're stuck cleaning up blood and entrails off the floor," lamented Gowland. Allysia shook her head before she allowed such disturbing images to appear in her mind. "It may take weeks before its fixed."

"But the old man promised we'd be the first to ride it, Ally! Aren't you excited?"

She forced her mouth into a semblance of a smile. "Thrilled."

Her stomach unclenched in relief. She had never felt so glad! She had enough thrills and chills to last her to the next lifetime, and, by the sound of it, the ride would have been a doozy.

"Onee-chan, it's getting late. We're tired," said Dee, materializing at her leftmost side.

"Let's go home!" added Dum, flanking her right.

Just as the twins were going to wrap their arms around hers, Boris pulled her out of their reach. He trapped her around his furry boa and purred, "Oh, she's not going to leave! It's dangerous for her to go out so late."

"We'll take care of her!" the children fiercely said, crimson aqua glaring at the pink feline.

"What can two little children do to protect her?" he challenged, striking a rather sensitive nerve. Dee and Dum gritted their teeth, faces burning with rage.

Before the children could provide a rebuttal, Gowland intervened. "Ah, she can stay here if she wants. Bloody old boy wouldn't mind if the girl stayed for one measly night!"

"…unless you two wish to stay and enjoy the musical styling of Gowland a second time today."

"Not necessary," the twins hastily said, tenderly holding their still ringing ears.

"Yay! It's settled then! Ally-chan will stay with us!" cheered Pierce, wrapping his arms gleefully around her waist.

Gowland guffawed in victorious triumph and boasted, "Yeah! You go tell that to your stupid boss! I'd like to see what he'll do about this!"

The twin's eyes narrowed into a glare. "We'll be back in the morning! You'll see!" With an angry growl of annoyance, the Bloody Twins begrudgingly turned around and began to walk away. The three Amusement Park residents smiled at their success.

"Hey… I should have had a say in this," Allysia piped up, trying her hardest not to sound whiny.

"Well, it's too late now, Ally!"

"Ally-chan is staying here for the night!"

"Come, we'll show you to your room."

Finding little use to reject their offer now, Allysia wearily sighed and followed the three off.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

After she stripped herself of her everyday attire and replaced it with her nightgown, she felt her body float towards her bed. 'Ah_! There's too many people here!_' she whined inwardly, burying her face into the pillow. An uncomfortable ache slowly blossomed in her skull, eradicating the wooziness from her mind. '_First, there __were talking rabbits, then the mafia, and even tone-deaf musicians!__What next?_'

She happily concluded that there was one commonality between all of these different kinds of people.

They all threatened her very existence.

"Ally-chan!" Pierce suddenly appeared from her doorway, flinging himself onto Allysia's unsuspecting person.

"Piece, get of me!" she rasped, struggling to collect her breath. Despite her cries for liberation, another weight suddenly appeared above her.

"Yeah, get off, Pierce. Allysia is mine," said Boris, his golden eye sneering at the mouse.

"No, chu! She's mine!"

"No, mine!"

"I am no one, but my own!" Allysia interjected, slapping the two humanoid animals away. They obediently crawled off her, sprawling themselves comfortably on her bed. Reorienting herself, she then asked, "Now what are you guys doing here? Shouldn't you two be sleeping?"

The two admitted they wanted to check up on her, considering she experienced far too much trauma for one day.

'_Trauma indeed…_'

A question soon popped into her head. "Guys, do you mind if I ask you a question?" Seeing the two nod and wait in curious anticipation, she continued, "Who's the King of Diamonds?"

Everything fell in silence. Pierce's visage blanched into a phantasmal white. Boris's face darkened, his features hard and stiff.

"Well? Who is he?"

Pierce shuddered, clearly opposed to the idea of speaking about the subject.

Boris spat out, "All you need to know is this. **I hate him**. Case closed."

Surprised by such a frank pronouncement, she turned her confusion to the mouse. The Villiers sighed as he found that avoiding the subject was futile. He cleared his throat and offered clarification. "The King of Diamonds is named Diamant. Just don't mind Boris. He just has some personal grudge against him. Diamant isn't really that bad. He's creepy, but not bad… though Gowland may say otherwise. Diamant and he do not get along very well, unless they have to."

Boris apathetically added, "It makes sense to me. Even though the Amusement Park is technically the Diamond territory and gave them a portion of the land, King Diamant and his mindless lackeys insist on calling themselves the 'official' Diamond territory. It doesn't help that so many people go with it as well. Can't blame the old man for getting upset about it."

"I suppose you'll meet Diamant sooner or later and can pass judgment for yourself!"

Allysia inwardly prayed that such a god-awful day doesn't come in her immediate future.

Boris suddenly snarled, "God, I hate that man!"

"He's is just a little sour because the King of Diamonds has a fetish for cats, especially a certain one named Boris!" whispered the orange-haired mouse.

"He likes everyone, dammit!"

"Yeah, but he likes harassing you the most!"

Boris glared poisonous daggers into Pierce's cheerful face. "Shut up now, you stupid dormouse, or else I'll cut your tail off."

"No! You wouldn't dare!" Pierce fearfully edged away from the irritated pink-haired cat, clutching his brown tail between his taut fingers.

"Anyway," shouted Allysia, promptly changing the subject before a tussle erupted, "The reason why I asked was because I met two knights form the Castle of Diamonds while I was in the forest."

"You met Chalice and Sayer and lived?" Boris gasped in amazement. "Wow, that never happens! Chalice is a sadistic she-devil and Sayer would kill anyone in a blink of an eye."

"Plus, they're _really_ scary," mumbled Pierce.

Allysia felt her head bob in complete agreement, still counting her lucky stars that her life was spared. She did withhold the little fact that Sayer and Chalice were ordered not to harm her. It seemed like a trivial detail. It couldn't possibly mean anything else… at least that's what she told herself.

"Well, we'll let you sleep now, Ally," said Boris, gracefully lifting himself off her bed and sauntering towards the door. "Sweet dreams!"

"Nighty, night, chu!" Pierce gave Allysia a quick embrace before he scurried right out the doorway.

The door gently shut to a close. Allysia settled herself underneath her covers, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"Diamant…" She repeated the name in a nearly inaudible tone, simply testing it on tongue. "Such a strange name…"

Still something about it sent shivers down her spine. Why in the world was she so fearful about someone whom she never met? None of it made sense...

She shut her eyes closed, assuming she was only tired. All she needed was to sleep to help regain some perspective on her situation.

She relaxed her mind, freeing it of all apprehensions and allowed herself to drift into the realm of dreams.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Allysia?"

She ignored the voice, automatically assuming it was Nightmare. Dear, she was in no mood to deal with the incubus! She just wanted to rest, and she planned on sleeping right through this crazy dream world if she could.

"Allysia, are you awake yet?'

Her voice came out in a low, incoherent mumble. "Mho mghay, muw gibric mran!"

The man only clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Dear, Allysia! Have you reverted back to the Stone Age and can't form a coherent sentence anymore? What a shame!"

It took the young girl a moment to come to the realization that perhaps this person wasn't the incubus, but another person entirely. A person she vaguely recognized.

"Why the frigging hell are we still here? The girl can't wake her lazy ass up to even look to us. We might as well go!"

Allysia snapped her eyes open and jolted upright. Her head recoiled back once she came into contact with a hard surface, her forehead pounding with pain.

"Ow!" Both she and the red-haired man cried, massaging their tender foreheads with their hands.

After recollecting herself, Allysia flung a pointed finger at him. "What are you doing here in my dream, Joker? I thought only that incubus could do that!"

Joker smiled and said cheerfully, "Oh, it's a gift I share as well, but I am a... dream demon of sorts. Similar to that of an incubus."

Allysia nodded her head, wondering why this world had a propensity to using odd phrases and words.

She watched as Joker nonchalantly turned his gaze towards their general surroundings, appearing even fascinated by the miasma of formless green light. He absently inquired, "Now then, did you find out any information about Diamond King?"

Allysia bobbed her head, elaborating on the info Boris and Pierce told her.

His red orb met her gaze once more, lighting up in subtle wonder. "Not bad. Now don't you think they are such disillusioned fellows?"

"What do you mean?"

Joker froze briefly then turned his smiling face towards her. "All I can say is stay away from that king and his ilk if you can. You'll last a little longer if you do."

"But why? What do you mean by that? Is he really that brutal? They said he's not that bad." As her mind flooded with so many questions, all fighting to rise and break through into the surface, one thought rose to the forefront of her mind.

_Other two times? I think you must be confused. I believe I tried __talking to only once before._

Cerulean eyes stared into his single blood, red orb. She slowly asked, "Are you the one that spoke to me that one time in my dream?"

Her body fell completely still when Joker pulled her into him. Only a thin barrier of air separated their faces. The clown softly drawled, "All will be explained at a later time, Allysia..."

The brunette suddenly felt unable to breathe. Her heart began to race at an uncontrollable pace. He was just so close. She could not think properly. Her eyes automatically shut close, her mind evoking the last time someone was in such close proximity. '_It was when that stupid__rabbit kissed me._'

Moments passed by.

Nothing happened.

She slowly opened her eyes. Her brown lashes fluttered, rendered confused by her current situation. She was suddenly all alone.

_Your role is very great… one that is not meant for the faint of__heart. I wonder what you would choose? Would you embrace your perilous __destiny or run away from it? _Those words floated into her ear like a gentle breeze, quiet and subtle. She almost could have sworn it was all part of her imagination.

Another part of her argued otherwise. She heard it. Those questions she long repressed began surging to the forefront of her thoughts, demanding her attention once more.

'_Roles… destiny… sounds like some cliché from a novel or __something._' What in the world was becoming of her poor character? '_Girl thrown into a world to fulfill some sort of life-threatening__destiny and everyone is forced to love her… Ah! No! Does that mean __I'm a Mary Sue?_'

She shivered such frightful notions away, terrified that she would become the very sort of characters she despised seeing in stories.

Just as those questions continued nibbling at the corners of her mind, attempting to procure her attention once more, a deep voice piped up, "…Boo!"

Allysia jumped back, seeing Nightmare suspended upside down. "Don't scare me like that!"

Nightmare grinned, floating upright, and said, "But it's so easy! You really should keep your guard up."

Blue orbs narrowed into a heated glare, torrents of aqua stabbing imaginary, watery daggers into Nightmare's person. "Now, you certainly had quite the day it seems! I never thought you would knock out so quickly. I wasn't expecting your presence at all!"

That would have explained why he was not the one that met her when she awoke in his territory... and Joker did.

"Is there something you'd like to talk about?' Nightmare inquired, tilting his head slightly to the side. "You seem as if something is bothering you."

"Yeah… I do." She meditated how exactly she should broach such a subject, testing and stringing words and phrases in her mind. Realizing that Nightmare already had a very good idea what she was wanting to ask – thanks to his wonderful ability of mind reading – she sighed and bluntly asked, "Just who is Joker?"

Surprise flickered beneath the silvery depths of his gray spheres, but he quickly composed himself. "Joker? Why, he's just the ringleader of a circus that comes to Clover every once in awhile. That man does know how to put on a show… why, do you ask?"

"Oh, nothing… It's just… what do you mean by once in awhile?"

Nightmare elaborated that Joker would only come in the season of April, the time of tricks and fools. It's an important rule in their game, and even Joker must abide by it.

The breadth of his words slowly absorbed into her mind. Then how in the world had she seen him with her own eyes? None of it made any sense. '_Unless there is a way around it…_'

"...When he's here, just stay away from him." Allysia was taken aback by the sudden seriousness in Nightmare's eyes. "He is not the kind of man you could openly trust. He is the Joker after all."

Joker... They were generally renown tricksters, skilled in the art of deception and guile. It did seem foolish of her to even consider trusting him.

For some reason, a part of her couldn't help, but believe that Joker wasn't all too bad... Then again, another part of her felt like he was hiding a big secret from her – a secret that may be the end of her.

"Now, I'll let you get some rest, dear girl! You have quite the day in store for you tomorrow." Allysia arched a brow. Nightmare beamed and reassuringly patted her head. "You'll see what I mean. Sweet dreams!"

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Nightmare was one to keep his word. She ascertained that much. When he said something was going to happen, she could almost guarantee it would.

She just wished the role holder would have told her that the next day was going to be so _noisy_.

Her eyes were still heavy with sleep, but she forced her lids up and glared at the sounds resonating from outside. It was incredibly irritating, considering it still felt so early in the morning.

'_Just what's going on out there?_' She flinched when a gunshot sounded. '_...and isn't it too early for such violence?_'

Lifting her tired body from the warm depths of her bed, Allysia dragged herself up and out towards the door.

"What's all the racket?" a husky version of the brunette's voice sounded, squinting at the early morning rays.

She stifled a squeak when two pairs of arms laced around her torso, trapping her in a tight squeeze. "Onee-chan, we missed you so much!" the twins happily proclaimed. "We promise to never leave you again!"

"Dee and Dum?" Allysia noted in surprise, blinking away the sleep from her eyes. "What are you two doing here?"

The two guard children pouted their lips and whined that they promised to return to get her in the morning and there they were.

"We just never expected you come with friends." Boris strolled up to the three figures, twirling his pink pistol by its golden chain.

"Be careful where you swing that! You might hit someone!" shouted Allysia.

"Ah, relax, Ally! The safety is on!" Boris assured her with a toothy grin.

"So, how are things going?" Dee asked.

Boris gestured with his head that they should look for themselves. Allysia followed his gaze, her eyes first coming into contact with Elliot... and a spastic Pierce.

"Eli-chan! Eli-chan! Hug! I want to hug you!" Pierce cried, struggling to wrap his arms around the orange-haired man.

Nerves riddled Elliot's temples. His hand held Pierce back and kept him a comfortable distance away. "Damn it! How many times do I have to tell you I don't want to be hugged? Stay away from me!" Seeing that Pierce was not going to give up anytime soon, Elliot smacked the dormouse away.

The red-haired mouse whined, "But I can't help it! Eli-chan is so cute!"

The March Hare sighed, latching his hand onto his forehead once more when the mouse recovered and attempted to hug him.

A gunshot fired.

Allysia's head rotated towards the source. Gowland's face was flushed an angry red. His machine gun was poised to fire at its desired target. Her eyes nearly bulged from her head when she saw that Blood Dupre was standing before him, bemusement dancing over his countenance.

"Say it again. I _dare_ you to say it again," the Amusement Park owner growled darkly, verdant orbs narrowed and pooled with irrevocable fury.

"Really? Are you sure you can do that?" challenged the Mafioso, his stance unconcerned and relaxed.

"Just try me. I am not joking." Gowland's expression grew rigid, his fingers gentlyresting on the gun's trigger. "I'd love to have some mafia Swiss cheese."

Blood grinned and scoffed. "I thought you would have loved a little lamb... Mary."

Gowland's machine clicked. "That's it! **Go die, Hatter!**"

Blood evaded the flurry of bullets as they flew in erratic directions. One had flew right above Allysia's head, shooting right into the door behind her. Several of the Park and Hatter's servants retrieved their own guns and open fired.

The twins cheered happily, brandishing their own weapons. "Yay! To think we thought we were going to have to go about this 'peacefully'."

"Shall we join the fun?" Boris's gun clicked. The safety was off.

"Oh yeah! Charge!"

And in jumped the three boys, shooting off bullets and joining the hellish mayhem with such incomprehensible joy on their face. Blood splattered from the fallen servants. The floor was stained with dark, black scarlet.

In normal circumstances and with proper hours of sleep, Allysia would be horrified by such chaotic gore and violence.

Now?

She was far too tired to even react with more than a yawn, vaguely wondering if she was starting to grow immune to the violence.

"Time to go back to bed," said Allysia, turning around and stumbling back to her room to get some shut eye while the rest of the role holders and servants continued to duke it out.

* * *

**A/N Notes:** Okay, someone said before that the Diamond territory was really the Amusement Park. My answer was this: I didn't really notice that until _after_ I outlined a general skeleton of my story. I didn't have to change very much, and some of the strange circumstances had been explained in my story (by Boris~).

If you didn't catch it, it's basically like this. Though the territory itself is known as the Castle of Diamonds it is not exactly the Diamond territory. That is simply the name, but it does not mean that it's the official Diamond territory.

Ideas (if any) are appreciative, but feedback would happily suffice.

Thanks for reading~


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**New Job?**

She didn't comprehend it, couldn't possibly even wrap her own brain around it. How in the world could something so mundane be so fascinating? No matter how hard she tried, Allysia couldn't help, but continue staring at it, mesmerized by its subtle majesty.

The object was so elegant, a pure shade ebony. The decorum of roses were bright against its dark backdrop, appearing beautiful and fresh. The array of cards merely accentuated the exotic appeal of the item.

The young Gale sighed wistfully at the sight. It was so strange… She had never been this captivated by something like that before.

"Allysia, what on earth are you staring at?" The brunette foreigner snapped herself out of her reverie, dazedly turning her blue orbs towards him. Blood Dupre regarded her in curiosity, his bright green eyes gleaming with inquisition.

She pointed and replied crisply, "That."

The young man turned his head towards the direction of her hand. He blinked once in surprise and met her gaze once more. His eyebrow arched, his expression incredulous. "…my hat?"

Allysia vigorously nodded her head. "Yeah, it's so cool!" An idea flashed from underneath her aqueous orbs as she first glanced over to Blood's hat then back to Blood himself. She forced her lips to form a bright smile. "Hey, Blood! You wouldn't mind if I-"

"No." Her smile melted from her face as she watched him drop his gaze back down to his massive pile of paperwork and proceed to do his work.

Her cheeks blew up into two furious balloons. "How rude! You never let me finish!"

"Why should I? I already knew what you were going to say."

"No, you didn't!"

This had forced the Mafioso to pause and lift his gaze once more. "Really? My apologies then. I just assumed that you were going to ask if you could wear my hat. If that wasn't the question, then by all means continue."

Her eyes narrowed into a fierce leer. "Shut up."

She snapped her head away from the dark-haired male, nearly making her fume when she heard him chuckle.

She then looked down to the novel in her lap. A low sigh escaped her lips as she shut the book closed. Her head leaned against the plush couch, unsuccessfully suppressing a groan.

"Bored?" She willed herself to ignore the man's voice, the irritating tap of his pen. "Huh. I would have thought my vast selection of novels would impress you, not bore you."

"Oh! Don't get me wrong. I simply adore your library. It's almost as big as the one back at my home." She paused for a moment and dreamily sighed, reveling in the sight of such tall bookshelves, filled to the very brim with hard cover books and paperbacks of various genres. "It just feels so stuffy in this mansion! You haven't let me go out ever since you and your mafia ilk brought me here. It's like I haven't gone out in weeks!"

"…we only brought you home yesterday morning."

She snapped her head up, staring at the young man in complete disbelief. "Seriously?

Blood nodded his head. Allysia wilted at such an affirmation and sunk deeper into the ottoman, complaining, "That's ridiculous! I hate being cooped up! Why am I even under house arrest? I didn't even do anything wrong."

Blood replied, "Well, it's your punishment for leaving so suddenly and staying in another territory. It was quite offensive, who offered you appropriate housing already."

The brunette exclaimed in defense, "That's just an excuse! I didn't mean to stay there so long." All ire evaporated from her systems, her body too tired to retain such a taxing emotion. "…god, it's so boring here…"

"Well," Blood said, resting his head atop his hand, green orbs gleaming, "Perhaps I can help solve that…"

"Nah, I'll just leave rather than undergo such torture!" She swiftly rose to her feet, grumbling under her breath. "Pervert… god, you're just like the book!"

His curiosity was immediately piqued, causing an eyebrow to rise. "What did you say?"

Her hand immediately flew to her lips, cursing herself for speaking her thoughts aloud rather than keeping them to herself. She rushed out the door, not offering any response.

This had left the mafia boss in a curious daze. He merely sat there in deep thought. '_Like a book?_'

Such an intriguing comment, equally intriguing as his resemblance to another man.

Just what did she mean? Why was she so hesitant to elaborate?

A smile curled his lips, pleased by the thought of a new challenge. He vowed to find out what exactly she meant… whether the foreigner liked it or not.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Meanwhile the aforementioned foreigner began her rounds around the mansion halls, her footsteps echoing in the complete emptiness. She looked everywhere, stalking every nook and cranny for even a breath of life. To her dismay, there was not a single person to be found.

'_So boring…_' She thought the nth time she left Blood's office. '_What I wouldn't give to get out of here…_'

Her chances of that? Slim to none.

Honestly, what gave him the prerogative to lock her up there? She may live under his house, but he was not her master or was she in anyway bound to his jurisdiction. She even argued the stupidity of the matter with the man, but was promptly rejected.

'_May the plague rain upon him for such a wrongdoing!_' she inwardly fumed, but released her frustration in a single, tired sigh.

She just wished for someone, anyone for that matter, would just come along and rid her of her boredom… even if it was just for a moment…

"This is so much work!"

"Yeah, we don't even get paid enough to do this!'

Allysia paused in her place, waiting as the voices grew louder and more coherent. She then watched in relief as three familiar figures strolled towards her direction.

The one with rabbit ears chided the other two, "Stop complaining about it! Doing chores around the mansion isn't that bad."

The twins groaned, clearly thinking the contrary.

Allysia brightened up and shouted, "Hey, guys!"

Elliot and the twins turned towards her, meeting her sparkling aquamarine.

"Onee-san!" Dee and Dum extolled, running forward to give the foreigner a tight embrace.

Elliot stormed forward and promptly stopped them, grabbing hold of their collars before they could reach the brunette. "Stop it! You two don't have to tackle Allysia every time you see her."

"Newbie-hare is just jealous he can't hug one-san!"

"Or perhaps he's upset that he can't even get a hug."

"Ooh! Or maybe even anything _more_ than a hug."

"Ew, you're are a pervert, newbie-hare! Why would you even think of defiling onee-san in such a way?"

"Shut up! We don't have time for you nonsense right now. We have a lot of chores to do!"

Just before the March Hare could wring the snickeringtwin's necks, Allysia asked curiously, "Chores? What kind of chores do you need to do?"

All three males sighed. Elliot released Dee and Dum from his grasp. They desolately explained that their workload consisted some of the most mundane of tasks – cleaning and cooking.

Dum moaned, "We'd much rather stand in front of the gate than go through such torture!"

"But you two rarely do your job then," argued Elliot.

"…and your point, you stupid rabbit?"

Elliot responded nothing more than an irritated smack to both of their heads.

Allysia quickly chirped back into the conversation. "But if it's really so much work, then why don't you let the servants around here handle some of it? I've seen quite a lot of them hanging around."

Again, Allysia was assailed with a harmony of languorous sighs, their shoulders visibly wilting in dismay.

"Jeez, we wish," grumbled Dee.

"We're already short on hands. There's no one else left to dump this all on so Blood is making us do it," shrugged Dum.

Elliot glanced down at the long list in his hands and added glumly, "Gah… it will take forever to get this all done…"

Allysia added to their three-part harmony with her own sigh. "Aw… I was so bored, and I was hoping to hang out with you guys… Wish I could help."

Her body suddenly tensed; her hand intrinsically flew to her mouth, hoping such a small act would remedy such a catastrophic mistake. She remained perfectly still as three sets of eyes sparkled at her suggestion, numerous plots and devious ideas already formulating in their minds.

"You do?"

There was no taking it back. The Gale cursed herself for making such a mistake, regretting her thoughtless word choice. Ramifications of apocalyptical proportions were surely going to ensue.

And with her luck, they did.

"Well, if onee-san really wants to help, then she has to be properly dressed!" Dee said cheerily.

"Come on! You need to be in your uniform, onee-san!" added his brother.

"Huh? No, wait a minute! I didn't really mean..." The three Hatter subordinates did not allow her to complete her thought and dragged her off.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Preposterous. Ludicrous. Absurd.

Those were three of several words she could possible use to could properly describe her current state. Were the heavens playing some cruel, sick joke on her? At such a thought, her pale hands gripped the white dressy fabric even tighter, crumpling it in her irritated palms. A tiny hat sat at an angle on her brown hair, staying in place thanks to a white ribbon tied under her chin.

They couldn't possible be serious.

"**I look stupid**," she repeated for the thousandth time.

"What are you talking about? Onee-san looks adorable!" swooned the two twins.

"I. Look. _Stupid_," she repeated through her gritted teeth. "Must I really wear one of the Hatter maid uniforms? I'd be more comfortable in more normal outfit."

"No! You have to wear it," they argued, and she merely sighed in defeat.

Before she could argue such a subject any further, a long piece of paper was shoved into her hands. Dum said with a wink, "Now, you should really get started."

"All the instructions are listed right there already! Good luck!"

"But, wait, then what are you guys...?"

A silent wind brushed her brown locks, striking her with a sudden state of emptiness. Allysia was left completely and utterly alone.

She took one more glance at the mirror and cursed under her breath. "Ah, man... I hate chores! What have I gotten myself into?"

She looked down and slowly unraveled the list to see her workload... and was immediately dumbfounded. It did not seem like it would end! There was so much to do. How could she dream of getting it all done in such a short period of time?

'_Good news is that it seems I won't be bored anymore... For quite awhile it seems too. I guess it's better than doing nothing._'

Optimistic over the thought of doing something different for a change, Allysia strengthened her resolve and ambled out the room, heading off into the bath area for her first job on the list - preparing the bath.

She had never really been to this particular bathroom, mostly because the role holding men seemed used it. What was so special about this one? There was several others at their disposal so it baffled her why they chose to go to this particular one.

Now, she understood.

"It's huge!" she gasped, staring down at the large bathtub with shocked blue eyes. "It's even bigger than my bathroom at home..."

She then scrambled forward to admire the large tub, its glorious splendor. To her it seemed more like a pool than anything she's ever seen. She can almost imagine herself sitting there, allowing her body to relax in the tubs vast expanses as she soaked all the tension away…

'_Now is no time for daydreaming._' Shaking her head, she quickly began filling the tub, following instructions as she went. '_Just a two drops of this soap bottle and the list says I'm done here._'

She turned faucet off and squeezed two large drops of soap into the tub, watching as the water began to bubble.

"Well, that's one down and several more to go…" She sighed at the thought and left the room to work on the next item on the list.

…She never quite noticed two devious little tykes entering right after her.

"Aw, onee-san is so cute in her maid uniform!" Dee cheered to his brother.

Dum then added sadly, "But since she's so busy working finishing our chores, she has no time to play with us..."

The Tweedle twins sighed in despair over such a depressing thought. If only there was a way she could finish her list faster so she could play with them...

Then they were stuck by a marvelous idea.

"Hey, we should help onee-san finish her chores! Then she could play with us!" They rejoiced at the thought and looked down at the bath.

Dum announced, "And we'll start here with this bath! There's not enough bubbles to make this a proper bubble bath."

"And there's no way two drops could be enough," Dee agreed, examing the soap bottle in his heads. They exchanged a single glance and smiled.

They announced in unison, "Let's put everything in there!" The red twin quickly ran over to turn on the faucet while the other deposited the bottle's contents into the rushing water.

They soon watched happily as more bubbles began to form and pop, rising up from the pool to form a bubble mountain. "Now that's what I'd call a bath!"

"Onee-san, will be so proud! Let's go help her some more!"

The twin children patted each other on the back for performing such an excellent job and ran out the door... all the while not noticing that they had left the faucet on or witness the monster they had created...

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Allysia was rather pleased with herself. The list surely wasn't as hard as she thought it would be. Most of the affairs were all simple, domestic tasks. It all involved some sort of cleaning job to preparing the simplest of snacks and meals.

"I just hope they didn't make me do all the cooking and cleaning because I'm a woman," she absently thought, pouring the cake batter into the pan. "If they did, ooh... I'll give them a piece of my mind."

She already had to deal with such nonsense from Eclaire, who was brainwashed into believing a woman's place was at home. She certainly did not need anyone else telling her she needed to cook, clean, and look pretty. She did not need to deal with another sexist pig like her ex-boyfriend.

She paused for a brief moment then violently shook her head. '_No, Ally, you are not going to waste valuable brain cells over that chauvinist jerk._'

But still, the memories flooded into her mind. She could still recall all those hours slaving over the kitchen, trying to clean the place up so it was spotlessly clean, even succumbing to the sin of vanity to meet his approval...

Allysia slammed the oven door closed. Her breath bordered over erratic as she set the temperature and the time. '_No one's going to try and change me. No one, especially not him..._'

Still, her heart twisted at such a sudden influx of memories, tightening the valves to her lungs and placing such a lump in her throat. She was supposed to be over such disconcerting memories. He was not worth feeling like this. And still...

'_I have to get my head straight._' She quickly casted her eyes around the kitchen, searching for something that could properly distract her. '_God, the kitchen is a mess... I have to clean up._'

She quickly left the room and resolved to clean everything spotless, even scrub these irritating memories from her mind...

As soon as the foreigner left the room, Dee and Dum entered the kitchen.

"Wow, onee-san must be some cleaning machine! I can't believe she finished so much already!" the red twin said in amazement.

"And only half it was because we secretly helped her!" Dee said in equal surprise. Soon, their attentions were drawn to the fragrant aroma of sweets. "Food!"

The twins trotted over to the oven, nearly salivating at the pastry. "Yum! It smells great! When does the timer say it's going to be finished?"

The blue-eyed Tweedle glanced over to the timer and gasped. "Thirty minutes? I can't wait that long! I say we turn up the heat!"

"Yeah! Then maybe it would cook in half the time!" Dum agreed, promptly turning the temperature of 350 degrees to a whopping 700. Dee, in turn, lowered the timer.

Both twins smiled at each other. "We are such good helpers... won't onee-san be happy!"

The twins skipped out the room, humming a rather cheerful tune.

Meanwhile, the oven was burning hot, already releasing tiny tendrils of black smoke...

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'_...why do I feel like something bad is coming to happen?_' wondered Allysia as she lugged along an empty bucket as well as several other cleaning tools.

Such a random thought was unfounded and utterly ridiculous. She made sure everything was just fine. The tasks were unbearably simple so it would be impossible for her to mess it up.

'_Unless someone else messed things up and tampered with something..._'

Suddenly Allysia felt something wet touch her feet. She looked down and saw that the hall floors were soaking wet. She slowly glanced back to see the source of such a deluge - the bathroom, the one she personally prepared.

'_Crap..._'

A horrible odor made it way to her nostrils, extricating a small cough from her throat. It only took her a second to realize it was smoke.

'_Crap!_' Allysia dropped everything and rushed into kitchen. She gasped, freezing in her place as she stared at the oven. Long pillars of black smog emanated from the mouth of the oven, ranking the kitchen air with black smog and the scent of burning. Beside it, the timer was going crazy as it declared the baking time was complete. She quickly turned the timer off and looked at the oven temperature.

"700 degrees? Who put it up that high?" Instead of dwelling on such a thought, Allysia immediately spring to action. Standing off to the side, Allysia held her breath as she opened the oven. Her eyes burned as she reached in to take her cake out. She then felt a frown curve her lips as she looked down to looked at her burnt creation.

'_There it goes... burnt to ashes..._'

She only sighed, faintly remembering there was another problem at hand.

It was far too tempting to just pretend she never saw it, continue on with her work and home someone else fixes the problem for her. Looking out again into the hallway, it simply was not the kind of problem she simply could not walk away from.

With a tired groan, Allysia willed herself to go towards the bathroom door and open it.

A cold wave of sudsy water rushed out the door and soaked her ankles. She barely noticed the sudden chill sweeping over her wet feet. All she could do was stare.

Everything in the bathroom was swallowed by a mountain of bubbles.

She frantically glanced around, ascertaining that the source of such a thing was created by something completely inhuman, a monstrous bubble creature. Such a beast controlled such sudsy chaos in the area which she remembered was the bath tub.

'_Well I guess this is all my fault for complaining today was going to be boring… God, if I ever find the idiots that did this, they are so dead._' Allysia trudged through the pool and quickly turned the running water off. She frantically swept away the bubble beast, hoping to find the one item she needed to solve this horrible problem.

"There!" In a single moment of beautiful clarity, Allysia saw it. "There's the plug!"

She quickly leaned forward and reached, trying her hardest to pull that little cork out.

Instead of her pulling the plug, it ended up pulling her.

Allysia suddenly struggled to regain her poise when found herself full submerged in the soapy water. Ignored the stinging sensation when she opened her eyes, she placed found her hands firmly placed over the plug. All she had to do was pull.

She knelt down and pulled with all her might, struggling to free it from the tiny hole. No matter how hard she tried, it felt like her attempts were completely fruitless. She could not pull it out no matter how hard she tried.

'_Stubborn thing..._' It was good that Allysia was equally as stubborn. She refused to allow an inanimate object get the best of her!

Still, the longer and harder she tried, she felt more conscious of the lack of air in her lungs, the pain burning in her chest. How she wished she was just a little stronger... she didn't want to give up when she felt so close getting it out...

Suddenly, she merely stared as another hand reached out and placed it over hers. In one fluid motion, the mysterious figure pulled the plug up.

Soon, the water slowly spiraled down the drain.

Once the water was gone, Allysia swiped the bubbles away and inhaled a copious amount of air, desperately trying to refill her empty lungs.

She then said in relief, "Oh thanks so much for the help! I truly app..."

Her words suddenly died at her lips when she looked up to see a pair of green eyes. Indignation welled up in her as she shouted, "**Blood**?"

"In the flesh," Blood said smoothly, a smug smile curled at his lips. "And you are very welcome, milady. I always like to extend my services to poor damsels in distress."

"Trust me, I was no damsel in distress!" she spat out evenly. "What are you doing here?"

"One of the maids expressed concerns when she saw the twins stalking around the halls. She was especially frazzled when she smelt smoke and noticed the floors were soaking wet so she spoke with me about it," the Mafioso supplied.

The young girl twitched at the statement. '_Oh... I should have known. It was those Tweedle dorks!_'

"Of course, I went out to properly investigate the anomalies. I ordered the maid to make sure the smoking problem was properly taken care of while I investigated the bathroom flooding… which of course, leads us both to our current state." Blood quickly climbed out of the deep tub and extended his hand to help hoist her up.

Allysia considered the gesture for a single moment before scoffing. She stubbornly rose up and climbed out of the tub herself.

Blood smirked at her strange behavior and proceeded to dry his head before putting back his signature top hat. "Now it is my turn to ask you a question. What in the world were you doing? Why are you dressed in such a manner? You are our guest, not our maid."

"Blame your role holding subordinates for this ridiculous getup. They were complaining about this massive workload so I offered to help." The wet foreigner reached into her pocket and pulled out a soggy piece of paper. "Here's a list of chores they asked me to do. You can try reading it if you can still can."

Blood graciously accepted the piece of parchment and carefully unraveled it, deciphering the wet letters with his studious green eyes. He spoke in realization, "Interesting… it seems the twins had given you all the chores I issued them."

"…all their chores? Not just a few or some?" Blood nodded his head. Allysia then remained completely still, processing his words in his mind. An angry nerve exploded on her temple; her hands balled up into angry fists. "…that's it. I'm going to kill them."

"Instead of expelling your frustrations in such a negative way, perhaps mind hearing my proposal for a moment?" Blood languidly tossed the towel right onto her head. "I should rather a call it a compromise, if you will."

Drying her wet face and hair, Allysia's interest was immediately piqued. "I'm listening."

The raven Mafioso grinned. "That's excellent to hear. Milady, based on your irreconcilable boredom and the current state of my mansion, how would you like it if I allowed you to continue maid work and to visit other territories when you so pleased?"

Allysia paused for a moment before she allowed the euphoria of the very notion control her features. Her blue eyes narrowed in suspicion. "There's a catch, isn't there?"

"As intuitive as ever, milady," Blood said. "My only condition in allowing you such freedom… is that you simply tell me what you meant when you said I reminded you of a character from a book."

Allysia immediately froze. She merely stared at the young man before narrowing her eyes.

'_Damn Blood... why does he always have to go and get what he wants?_' She considered refusing, but the idea of liberation was far too tempting to pass up… and of course, he knew she wouldn't possibly refuse.

She released a loud annoyed breath and pouted, turning her head to the side to glare at the floor. For a moment, everything was engulfed in perfect silence.

Suddenly she quietly said, "I meant exactly what I said. You remind me exactly of a character in a book."

"Really? What sort of book is it?"

"It's… a book about Wonderland." Blood blinked in surprise, watching as nostalgia touched her bright blue eyes and soften her tense features. "All the people here remind me of the characters in a novel in my world… which I guess makes sense since this is all a dream after all."

Blood regarded her with a blank look in his eyes. "Excuse me?"

"Yeah, I was reading the novel before I fell asleep so it would only make sense I would dream about it," she said airily. "There, now you have it. It's a very simple explanation… though I can't really understand why I need to since this is all a dream after all."

The Mafioso considered her words carefully before bursting out into laughter. "How amusing… though you two are nothing alike, you both decide to cope with the situation in the same exact way." Despite seeing the strange, curious look on the foreigner's face, Blood continued on with a different subject. "If I may, can I ask a few more questions?"

"Sure, shoot."

"Just… who is the author of this book?" he inquired.

"My mother wrote it," she answered simply. "Supposedly, she wrote it about a story her friend told her, but I think she was just kidding. She's a really creative woman."

He merely nodded his head in consideration. "Huh… your mother wrote it…"

"Next question please while I still have the patience," she said, squeezing the liquids out of her hair.

Blood nodded his head and eloquently asked, "Well, since that is a book and you say the novel is based off Wonderlanders… then who exactly was your favorite character?" Allysia froze again, seeming far too preoccupied with drying out every little droplet on her hair. "You're favorite character couldn't possibly be a certain Mad Hatter, could it?"

At the very implication, Allysia couldn't help, but burst out laughing. "Oh my god! No, of course not! I simply _despised_ the Mad Hatter character in the book. Oh god, what an ass… he would always had to get what he wanted when he wanted it… He's such a spoiled brat." She then glanced over to the Mafioso and added, "Hey! You seem to fit the description rather perfectly. Who would have known?"

Blood glared at her and her smiling face. "I see... By you candor, I don't understand why you never explained earlier. I had assumed it had something to do with your ex." Upon uttering the phrase, she visibly tensed, her hands gripping the towel tightly in her hands. She refused to speak another word.

Though her expression was calm, her mind was in a tumult. He was not going to ask about him was he? What would she say? She certainly would not explain something like that to him of all people! She refused!

But in her current position what choice would she have? She was wet and vulnerable, with nothing but a towel to defend herself. Running for it was out of the question; the Hatter blocked the entrance. If he wanted to ask her and wanted a direct answer from her, then there was no stopping him. The terrified female realized she was trapped.

Instead, Blood simply smirked and said, "Well, milady, thank you for the enlightenment then. I should go search for my subordinates. I have a lot I'd like to say to them at the moment..." Allysia released a breath of relief, watching as he opened the door and proceeded to walk out the door. Suddenly he paused and looked back, sending her a crooked smile. "You may keep the uniform if you wish, milady. It fits you rather well, and I do hope you'd wear it more often."

Slightly baffled by such a comment, she looked down at her uniform. Her cheeks flamed up as she noticed how the wet fabric clung onto almost every contour of her body. She squeaked in embarrassment and quickly wrapped the towel around her self, glaring hotly as the Mafioso left the room.

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'_Huh… the Mad Hatter was not her favorite character?_'

He didn't quite understand why he found himself offended by such a blunt proclamation. He had been pondering such a conundrum ever since he left her, his gaze absently searching the halls for his two subordinates. Who could she possibly like better? The Mad Hatter certainly is an excellent character to cast in any book.

Blood then thought that Allysia simply had a horrible taste in book characters or the author casted the Mad Hatter in a horrible light.

'And she said that her mother wrote it… I wonder who her mother is?'

Then there was also the issue of that ex of hers. What was this fellow like? Alice certainly was sore whenever he brought it up, but she never reacted quite like Allysia. Just the mere thought of asking her about him… almost seemed to pain her.

'_How curious…_' Blood was tempted to interrogate her about the subject, but chose against it. He wanted to deal with one issue at a time…

But now was certainly not the time to ponder such things.

Blood Dupre finally caught sight of his fair-haired right man, Elliot March.

"Ah, Elliot, I was hoping to see you," Blood said with a grin playing over his face.

At the sound of his superior's voice, Elliot jumped, dropping all of his paperwork onto the floor. "It wasn't my fault, Blood! The twins did everything! It was all their faults!"

"Calm down, I understand it was the twin's fault and made them take responsibility for it," he assured the hare. Elliot relaxed and released a loud breath of relief. "The reason why I was looking for you was because one of the maids said you have a letter for me."

Elliot considered his boss's words for a moment and quickly shuffled through his papers, searching for a specific piece of parchment.

Blood watched as his rabbit subordinate pulled out a tiny, red envelope. The Hatter graciously accepted it, examining first at the elegant, familiar calligraphy. He recognized it immediately.

"The Queen of Hearts sent me a letter…" Blood noted quietly.

Elliot bobbed his head. "Yeah! One of the Queen's soldiers came by and handed it off to me. It was really out of the blue if you ask me. What could she want?"

"Yes… what _could_ Vivaldi want from me..." He quickly opened the letter and began to read.

* * *

A/N Notes: -shot- I haven't touched this story in ages, but it was nice to finally get it done. I missed it. Hoped my update wasn't too suck-ish. I promise the next one will be better... whenever that comes out.

Thanks for the read~


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**Working for… the Castle of Hearts**

Should or should he not? That seemed to be the question of the day. Should he have tea inside the mansion today or should he not? Should he have warned Elliot about the twin's latest prank or should he not and be entertained by the result?

Should he have really accepted Vivaldi's offer or should he have declined?

That question plagued the Dupre's mind as Elliot and he escorted the young foreigner towards Heart territory. On one hand, they would gain a much-needed amount of money by accepting. It was impossible to get such currency otherwise, for Vivaldi would never even so much as offer a single cent to aid the Hatter. They already have their own issues to deal with.

On the other hand, the condition to receive the revenue did not sit well with him. Not at all.

"Blood, you still haven't told me where in the world we're going."

The Mad Hatter snapped out of his musings and turned his head, regarding Allysia's curious expression with impassive eyes.

'_Hmm… Should I have told her earlier or shouldn't I?_' He raised his gaze to look at Elliot, the hare's face tight and uneasy.

That question was quite easy to answer. Of course not. If they told Allysia they were escorting her there in the very beginning, he wouldn't have gotten very far.

The young foreigner suddenly scoffed and turned her attention towards his faithful right-hand man. "Okay, since your boss is not being very cooperative, maybe you can enlighten me, Elliot. You're _way_ nicer than your boss! Mind explaining to me why I'm tagging along?"

Seeing such a bright smile on her face, the innocent and curious gleam in her blue eyes, Elliot twitched and found himself speechless, torn between keeping his mouth shut and answering the poor girl.

Blood saved his subordinate the trouble and finally responded, "Simple. You are going to work as a temporary maid."

Allysia immediately stopped in her tracks. "**What?**"

"You are going to work for a little while as a temporary maid. Must I repeat myself yet again or did you hear me the second time?"

"Yeah, I heard you, but what do I look like, Dupre? A freakin' nanny? I don't get paid enough to do stuff like that!" Allysia cried in outrage.

"I don't pay you at all," he deadpanned in response.

She pursed her lips and scowled. "_Exactly._ What makes gives you the right to make me work at some random place without my consent?"

"Well, I am the territory leader. You said previously you would like to play a more supportive role in your place of stay. Working there would be the perfect way to make your keep," he explained.

Allysia scoffed. "That's completely absurd. Where are you guys even taking me to work?"

Blood merely smirked and turned his gaze forward. Allysia followed suit, grumbling under her breath about a certain annoying Hatter. Her blue eyes widened, nearly bulging from their sockets as she stared at the structure before them.

"No way." She halted in her place, withholding no intentions of moving. "There is no way in hell you are going to make me go there of all places!"

"I was afraid of that…" The dark-haired hatter sighed at the thought, waves of torrential blue crashing against his cool green. He then glanced over to his orange-haired subordinate. "If you would, Elliot."

The March Hare shrugged his shoulders, muttering as he neared the stubborn girl, "I'm sorry, Ally… please don't hold it against me."

"Huh? What are – AH!" Allyisa yelped when Elliot swung her over his shoulders, her face slamming into his back. "Hey, this is not cool! Put me down, Elliot! There's no way I'm stepping foot in that establishment!" she cried, struggling underneath his iron grasp.

"I'm sorry, milady, but Elliot answers to me and me alone. He shall put you down, when I give the word," the hatter said to her, bemusement dancing over his eyes. "And I wouldn't worry about you stepping foot in the territory. Elliot is fully capable of carrying and handing you to them himself."

Allysia replied with nothing more than a withering sneer, blue eyes boiling with a murderous intent. Blood felt his lips quirk in amusement as they all continued walking.

"Ally-chan?" All three Hatter residents halted in their place. Through his peripheral vision, he noticed Allysia's body stiffen at the pronunciation.

"Elliot, please take me back! Please take me b...!"

"Oh, dear Allysia, how I missed you so!" Her bright blues suddenly found themselves meeting an ecstatic pair of crimson. Her face crinkled in disgust, her feelings towards Peter White remaining not mutual.

"Haha, you look silly being carried that way, Ally!" Ace suddenly appeared beside Peter, chuckling at the girl's captured position.

"Shut. Up. Ace," she growled, glaring at both figures.

Recovering from his love-struck euphoria, Peter cleared his throat and turned to face the Hatter Mafioso. "I will be taking Allysia to her Majesty now, Hatter. Please tell your subordinate to release her."

"I don't believe that was part of our deal," Blood countered defensively. "We were supposed to escort the young lady to Heart Territory ourselves."

"Haha! And you have, Mr. Dupre! Now, we'll be taking Ally here thank you!" Ace said with a wide grin on his face, gently tugging her out of Elliot's iron grip.

"We will be sending you your payment once she's in the castle." Peter squared himself off, meeting the Hatter's composure with similar poise. "Well, what will it be, Hatter? Will we do this the easy way... or the hard way?"

Blood considered the request – demand he should really call it – and turned to face Elliot. His right-hand man slapped Ace away and glanced over towards his boss, awaiting for him to give a command. The raven Hatter then turned to look at the foreigner.

Allysia's eyes widened into large, blue plates, pleading him with each sparkle of her eyes. Blood certainly was struck by such a sight. It was odd to see the obstinate girl look so... _desperate_.

'_Please don't make me go_,' her blue eyes seemed to say - begged, he mentally corrected himself.

Blood was not the leader of the mafia for nothing. He still had enough willpower to deny even Wonderland's new beloved foreigner. After all, money was money – right now, he needed to get it through any means necessary.

With his face melting into its usual composure, he nonchalantly nodded his head to Elliot. "A deal is a deal I suppose..."

Allysia gasped in surprise and opened her mouth to protest, but no words left her throat. Before Elliot could even put her down, Peter scooped her into his arms, cradling her body in a bridal-style fashion.

"Alright, Ally-chan! Let's go get you properly dressed!" Peter said cheerily.

Allysia blanched. "Huh? Dressed?"

"Haha! This is going to be loads of fun!" chimed Ace.

With that, the Hare and the Hatter watched the two Heart role holders steal Allysia away, faintly hearing Allysia's cries of protest.

Elliot glanced over to the Mad Hatter and noticed a heavy frown weigh his lips.

"Blood, are you sure it was a good idea to let her go with them? If we pressed it further, I think we could have been the ones to carry her there," he inquired.

Blood offered no response, green orbs watching the foreigner's waning blue form. He tilted his top hat to cover his eyes, deadpanning, "I told you. I am only interested in the girl and in what she can offer. My duty to my territory comes before my own personal interests. You know our current deficit. We need money... and the foreigner's assistance would be an excellent asset."

"I know, boss..." Elliot still continued to study his boss's form, the stiff, hard planes of his face, the boiling nerves threatening to surface as he glared at the two Heart subordinates' backs...

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Is this _really_ necessary?" Allysia asked the Heart maids, watching them bustle around her form through the mirror's reflection.

"Lord White and Master Ace told us to get you dressed for your job, and so we did," one replied, tightening the bow around her waist.

Allysia winced, momentarily finding herself unable to breathe. "Still... I look _ridiculous_!"

The maids stepped aside, allowing the girl to study her appearance in the mirror. The sight appalled her. Why did they make her dress up like a Heart maid? It was not as if she was working there in the castle permanently! Garbing herself in such girly, frilly attire was completely unnecessary.

'_Wait until I get back and give that Hatter a piece of my mind..._'

"Ah! My Ally-chan looks adorable!"

Allysia cringed at the sound of the rabbit's affectionate tone, narrowly dodging his suffocating embrace.

"Peter, please explain to me why I have to wear something as abominable as this?" she inquired, her cool voice laced with irritation.

The White Rabbit grinned even wider. "The only reason is so that you could look cuter than you already are! It suits you so well!"

Her brow twitched. Her hands balled up into right fists. '_What I oughta..._'

"I have to agree with Ally here. It is silly of her to wear it." Ally looked over to see Ace hovering close by her side, his customary smile embossed on his face.

She released a grateful breath. "Thank you, Ace. I'm glad that someone agrees with me!"

Ace's face lit up even brighter. "Of course! That's why I suggest you take it off right now!"

Her expression melted away into complete passivity, glaring at the cheerful look on Ace's face. She should have known. "No way in hell."

"How dare you suggest something so unsavory of my pure Ally, Ace!" the Prime Minister irately interjected.

"Haha! Ah, don't play dumb! You were probably thinking of the same thing, Mr. White!" Ace replied with a cheeky smile.

Peter responded nothing more than a glare. Allysia wouldn't know if he even responded anyway. By then, the foreigner snuck out the door and crept out into the halls, desiring nothing more than to complete her duties as fast as possible.

"Miss Allysia?" The young girl leapt up in alarm, turning around to face the source of the voice.

She relaxed in relief, grateful to see that clear, faceless countenance on the maid's face. "Yes?"

"Her Majesty requests to see you. She would like to properly debrief you of your duties here," the maid replied glibly, turning on her heels and walking away. "Come. Please follow me."

Allysia followed without question, moving swiftly in hopes to escape Peter and Ace when they realized she was gone.

"Your Grace, I brought Allysia upon your request."

Allysia poked herself through the doorway, looking over towards the regal Heart Queen. Vivaldi looked up briefly from her paperwork and dismissed the maid with a languid flourish of her hand.

The Heart maid nodded her head and shoved Allysia into the tiny office room. She reached for the maid to remain by her side, but the maid already disappeared, closing the door right behind her. The foreigner looked back at the queen and waited, watching her pen her name in elegant calligraphy.

There was only more silence. Allysia gripped her skirt even tighter.

What could Vivaldi have to say to her? Warn of the possibility of losing her head? That one simple slip-up could be her last?

"Allysia." At the sound of her name, she jumped, snapping out of her musings to look at the queen. Vivialdi finally stood up and approached the door. "Follow Us please. It would be much easier if We spoke to you elsewhere."

Allysia nodded and obediently followed her, struggling to imitate her brisk pace. She found herself unable to speak a word. The nervous beatings of her heart rendered her speechless.

Why move her elsewhere? Did Vivaldi intend on showing her where she executed those unfortunate souls? Maybe even witness an actual execution? Shivers raced down her spine at the thought of head rolling before her very eyes.

Finally, Vivaldi paused before a single doorway.

"Please, come in here."

Allysia glanced over to Vivaldi and swallowed, her mind evoking several other gory scenes. Her hand wrapped around the metal knob and opened the door. She released a gasp. Her eyes widened.

What Allysia saw simply bowled her right over.

"What do you think, Allysia?" Vivaldi asked expectantly, appearing beside her with a glimmer in her violet eyes.

Allysia forced her shocked countenance to twist into a wry smile. "It's all so... so... _**cute**_."

At such a pronouncement, Vivaldi squealed in delight, wrapping her lithe arms around the foreigner's neck. "Oh, We were so sure you would appreciate it! Come in and relax!"

Allysia felt her head nod and watched Vivaldi skip forward, plopping herself on the floor and cuddling a few stuffed animals. Allysia's eyes still were wide open. She felt her mouth slack ajar. This was certainly not what she was expecting. Vivaldi's bedroom itself was predictable. It was large and spacious, befitting a woman of her elevated status. What she did not foresee were all these stuffed animals.

She quickly shook her head and asked, "Er, Vivaldi, what is it you needed to tell me? Why did you need to being me here?"

"Nothing. We simply wanted to spend more time with you so We 'hired' your services from the Hatter. You have been spending too much time with those boorish men. Then We didn't want Our idiotic subordinates stealing you away so We brought you here to see Our secret stuffed animal collection!" she explained.

Allysia remained dumbfounded, unable to utter a word. She would never have expected the royal and elegant Vivaldi to have such cute, childish tastes.

'_She looks more like her every time I see her._'

As she neared the young noble's form, watching her hug a tiny stuffed animal, Allysia could not help, but smile.

"You know, it's funny. You are even more like Eclaire than I thought possible," Allysia said, releasing a giggle at the thought.

Vivaldi seemed vaguely intrigued by the statement. "Oh? Is she also a beautiful queen like Us?"

"She's my cousin," Allysia clarified.

"Then we do not care." Vivaldi huffed, turning her regal gaze towards her toys.

"I'm sorry! I did not mean to offend you or anything!" Allysia quickly amended, sitting down right beside her. "It's just... It's kind or funny how much you have in common with my cousin! She loves these kinds of things."

After all, how could the young Gale forget all the trauma? The memory of those tea parties with Sir Grr and Lady Flufferstein, of wearing all those silly, frilly clothes?

Allysia would honestly find such stuffed animals cute if she wasn't so scarred by the memories. Her gaze wandered around the room, goosebumps prickling her skin at the sight of each glassy eyed stuffed toy.

She finally settled on one animal, the only one in the room that did not evoke such Eclaire-related, traumatic memories.

"Hey, I really like that one." Vivaldi perked up, following her gaze to one specific animal.

"Ah! You like that stuffed bear? You have a good eye." Vivaldi grabbed the bear and held it carefully in her arms, her violet eyes alight with nostalgia. "This is one of Our favorite animals here. It's very special to Us."

Allysia regarded the brown teddy bear, her blue eyes examining its glassy, hazel ones. "Oh? Why's that? Did you have it for a long time?"

"Not exactly. The king gave it to Us as a present when We were stressed planning for the ball one time many cycles ago. It was silly of him to give Us such a thing... but We accepted, considering it was cute enough for Our tastes."

Vivaldi turned the bear around, its synthetic eyes locking onto her wistful amethysts. Allysia was struck by such a sight. It was so strange to see Vivaldi look so wistful, to see her regal features soft and tinted with a rosy pink.

Then her mind evoked a single thought, rushing through her mouth before she had time to contain it. "Vivaldi... you really love the king, don't you?"

"No, We don't!" Allysia remained silent, struck by the ferocity of in the queen's voice. The Heart Queen than insisted, "We care absolutely nothing for the man! He's simply our partner.

We are forced to work together whether We like it or not. It is merely Our obligation – not due to affection and certainly not love!"

Vivaldi's body remained tensed, pouting as she glared down the bear in her hands. Allysia smiled at the sight, clearly convinced otherwise.

The young noble then suddenly changed the subject, "We actually do need your services." The brown-haired foreigner looked at her for a moment, clearly perplexed by such an abrupt statement. "It's about Our earlier answer to why We brought you here. You probably doubted We hired you for appropriate reasons. We really did want to see you; We weren't lying about that. Practically We do need some extra hands around here."

"Why?" Allysia forced herself to ask, partially afraid of her response.

Vivaldi's expression suddenly fell grave. "There have been unwarranted executions of Our employees." The raven noble paused, allowing her words to sink into the foreigner's mind.

"We first dismissed it as Our role-holding subordinates doing or that stupid cat and twins playing their stupid games again. We then noticed that the amount of deaths was much higher than normal. It's not simply a few bodies - it's tens of them. Even when Peter is in one of his volatile moods, he always is able to stop himself from killing too many."

"Why would anyone do that?"

Vivaldi shrugged her shoulders. "We have no idea. Despite the reason, even though We have been able to replace the majority of fallen servants, there is still a significant decrease.

We will not even discuss our funds to cover the costs of damages and the like. All We do know is this - this all is simply irritating. If We ever find out who's responsible for this mess, We will make sure they are properly punished."

Allysia felt a shiver race down her spine, nerved by such a frightening look on Heart Queen's face.

But such a fact struck her curiosity. _'So the Hatter territory aren't the only ones going through employee trouble?'_

She heard Elliot complaining about similar problems to her once before. Something like that was just too weird... why would someone run around killing faceless servants? It seemed much more practical to try assassinating the leaders. Were the other territories suffering similar problems?

Realization suddenly flashed in Vivaldi's eyes and she mused aloud, "Speaking of Our servants... why are they taking so long to complete Our tea? They should have fetched Us by now."

"If you'd like Vivaldi, I can go see if you're tea is done. I'd like to feel more helpful anyway," Allysia offered, climbing back up to her feet.

Vivaldi pursed her lips, displeased by such a notion, but begrudgingly nodded her head in consent. Allysia then left the room and rushed off for the gardens.

'_Besides, I couldn't stand sitting in that room any longer. Everything's just too... cute._' The foreigner shuddered at the thought and continued her way through the castle halls.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

One thing Allysia had already forgotten was the size of the Castle of Hearts. Perhaps she blamed it on her inflated esteem in her sense of direction. She was able to navigate the Hatter's estate fairly well now. She thought she would be able to move around the castle with minimal trouble.

'_Man, am I wrong..._' Allysia released a sigh of relief, elated by the sight of fragrant roses. '_About time I found this place._'

The only problem she had now was to find out where they were serving the tea. That was easier said then done.

Allysia lumbered through the expansive rose maze, searching high and low for some faceless servant to show her the way. So far, her search was fruitless. All she saw was this endless garden of green, red, blue...

'_Wait, blue?_'

Such a thought forced her to pause in her place. Since when was there anything blue? Vivaldi's garden only held vibrant, red roses in her garden. She never saw any other kind of flower or a rose of a different color…

Allysia took a few steps back and looked at an opening in the rose garden.

That speck of blue turned out to be much larger than she realized - the size of a person to be exact.

She was thoroughly surprised. '_What is Sayer doing here?_'

It was very odd to see him, one of the Knights of Diamond, in Heart territory. Perhaps he with his king coming on business?

Still, it had been many cycles since she last saw him - stolid, imposing... **dangerous**.

She just had so many questions. Everything about him was just uncanny – the material of the blade to the scythe, those eyes...

'_Was it possible that he was the one who…?_' Such a thought sent unprecedented chills down her spine, raise a dull pain in her ankle.  
__

_**Crack!**_

She snapped out of her musings when she stepped on a twig. Sayer immediately turned around to face, hard sapphire eyes locking onto her form. She fell completely still in her place, unable to move a single muscle.

She felt completely helpless, watching as he charged towards her. Her blood ran cold as he unsheathed one of his swords. Her heart beat loudly. The sword lunged forward. She instinctively closed her eyes, expecting to feel...

'_Nothing?_'

Allysia forced her eyes to open. There he was standing before her, his sword inches away from her cheek. She looked behind and saw he had struck another - a strange, faceless man holding a knife.

"Where do these people come from?" cried Allysia.

"Irrelevant." Sayer pulled his sword out, allowing the faceless assailant to crumple to the floor. He then brusquely turned around and walked away from her. Such abruptness struck her. For a few long moments, she was unsure what to say.

"Well... Uh, thanks for saving me... again, I guess," she said awkwardly.

"That's unnecessary. The person wasn't going to harm you anyway. You weren't his target," he deadpanned, his gaze remaining on the encompassing roses. "It was my duty to track him down and properly dispose of him."

Allysia considered his words for a moment. "Oh, so was he like those people from before? Rebels or something?"

"Insurgents against out Majesty's reign? Correct. Chalice and I were dealing with a small group of them when one escaped to Heart territory. Chalice went to inform the Queen of our presence while I dealt with the rebel," Sayer explained.

"So, currently, Chalice isn't here with you?"

"I'm waiting for her to return."

"Huh. I see..." Allysia nodded her head.

'_Chalice isn't here right now? ...Thank god!_' She sighed in relief at the thought.

The air fell into another moment of silence. Allysia shuffled in her place as she regarded the blue knight, the serious, focused gleam in his eyes. He did not turn to face her, acknowledge that she was even still there. Allysia wasn't sure how she should feel.

'_I'm leaning towards annoyed. I hate being ignored!_'

Still, in fear of inciting his wrath, she kept her calm and attempted to make conversation once again. "If you both are willing to go through all this trouble... you both must really revere your king, huh?"

To her surprise, Sayer responded with a loud scoff. "Revere? Don't make me laugh... All I am doing is fulfilling my duties. Our territory leader's words are law. It is my duty to follow him without question and complete any task he gives me. I am simply a powerless pawn, moving however my king wants me to move..."

Everything returned to its silence. Allysia merely observed his expression twist into a wry chagrin, glaring bitterly at the garden's roses.

His behavior made her curious. Why was he so bitter? Was he against the country's various leaders... or against his own king?

"Don't get me wrong. My king is decent... It's just that rulers are the one with all the power. It's only natural that they hunger for more..."

"What do you mean by that?"

Sayer snapped his gaze towards her, icy blue locking onto her warm sapphires. Her whole body froze. She felt paralyzed once again, air ceasing to reach her lungs. Her eyes narrowed; his face hardened into cold ice.

He spat out, "It's none of your business. Why are you still even here? Don't you have better things to do?"

Allysia stood there a moment, honestly struck by such a thing.

'_That's actually a good question... What was I supposed to do again?_'

She was so curious about Sayer's sudden appearance that she completely forgot what she was supposed to do. It was very important. She could recall that much...

Before the foreigner could consider the question even further, Sayer suddenly barked out, "You should not be around me! Or anyone else in this bloody country for that matter. This place is very dangerous, yet you flounce around like there are no dangers whatsoever!"

Allysia sucked in her breath as Sayer neared her, towering over her with his hard, steely gaze.

"If you value your life, you would get out of here as fast as you can. If you can't even do that, just stay away from me and the Castle of Diamonds."

Sayer had meant this as a form of intimidation, expecting her to cower in fear at his imposing stature.

Instead, she looked like she did not hear him say a word. He blinked once, noticing her gaze attracted elsewhere.

"Hey... You're hurt," she noted aloud.

He followed her gaze, studying his left hand. His eyes sparked in remembrance, examining the red spots coloring his white gloves.

"This is nothing," Sayer assured her curtly. "I was simply careless. I never expected this one person to be so skillful in handling his weapon and – **just what in the blazes are you doing?**"

Allysia was not deterred by his proclamation and continued her attempts to pull the glove off his bleeding hand.

She answered, "Trying to help you out, man. Do you want to bleed to death?"

"The wound is not that bad. Just leave it be. It's not like I can die from it anyway," Sayer refuted, cringing when the glove moved a fraction of an inch.

"That was a rhetorical question. I don't care what you want, even if it's something as suicidal as that. I'm not letting you walk around like this," she insisted, trying her best to slip the glove off as carefully as she can.

Sayer chided, "Didn't you listen to me at all? You shouldn't be helping when – **OW!**"

The glove was finally was yanked off. Allysia examined the injury with wide eyes, staring at the deep gash and dry, black blood.

"My, isn't this pretty? Totally nothing to worry about." She rolled her eyes and ripped a long strip of fabric off her skirt, praying Vivaldi would not mind. "Now, please hold still."

Allysia carefully wrapped the cloth tightly around his hand, internally chastising him. How in the world could a knight of his stature get such a nasty injury? A wound was nothing he should just carelessly ignored! Was everyone in this country so fatalistic? It made absolutely no sense as to why one should let themselves bleed to death…

"Why?" After one final tug, Allysia snapped her head up, staring at the knight with a questioning gleam in her eyes. Sayer's face seemed stiff and tight, pink blossoms rising in his cheeks suggesting embarrassment over the current circumstance. He repeated quietly, "Why are you doing this?"

Allysia blinked for a moment and answered, "Well, isn't it obvious? I just can't let you bleed to death. Come on! You're a knight! Lots of people rely on you back in your territory. You won't be helpful if you don't take care of yourself like that."

Allysia found enough courage to meet his gaze dead-on, her bright blue orbs locking onto a pair of hard sapphire. Sayer's eyes widened, seemingly shocked by such a pronouncement.

They stood there in that position for a few long moments before he crossed his arms, tossing his gaze towards the red flowers.

"Hmph. So naive... You'd be dead in no time if you continue along such thinking," he harshly blurted out. Before she could retort such a statement, he added quietly, "But... I appreciate the gesture. Th... Thank you."

Allysia found herself unable to speak. Sayer's expression seemed softer than it was before, his cheeks colored with a light spray of pink. Allysia felt her heart warmed, touched by that simple statement

'_I wonder... is he really the one before?_'

Now she wasn't too sure if he was her assailant. If he was, then what was stopping him from hurting her again? Perhaps now was not the best time, considering a member of Heart could step in any moment?

Still, her vision of the Diamond knight was unclear, clouded by various pieces of conflicting evidence and her own thoughts. He was one person she had yet to appraise, a mysterious jewel that continued to baffle her. Just who was Sayer? Who were the role holders of the Castle of Diamonds?

"Onii-chan, why are you collaborating with the enemy's faceless trash?"

Allysia and Sayer perked up, turning towards the source of the voice. Chalice appeared by her brother's side, her eyes widening as she recognized the foreigner. Chalice's blue eyes flashed, an emotion spreading over her face too quickly for Allysia to recognize.

Chalice furrowed her thin brow and noted blandly, "Oh... it's you. You would have fooled me wearing that ridiculous getup. You look like one of those silly rag dolls. Guess I shouldn't be surprised since it's coming from that tasteless queen here!"

"It's nice to see you too, Chalice," Allysia replied curtly, trying her hardest to hide her annoyance.

Chalice seemed to have forgotten Allysia's presence completely, cheerily turning her attention to her brother. "Well, the Heart Queen acknowledges our presence, and my subordinates are reporting to Our Majesty about our progress. I hoped you left some of the rebel for me!"

"I took him out just as I said I would," the blue knight glibly replied. Seeing his sister frown at such a thought, he grunted and dragged her away. "We have no more business here. We're leaving." He paused for a moment in front of Allysia, blinked, and continued on his way, saying, "Again, thank you, Allysia, for your earlier assistance."

Chalice waved an airy hand, calling out to her, "Bye bye, Ally! I hope to see you again real soon!"

'_Yeah... I hope not._' Nonetheless, Allysia smiled and waved, watching the two Diamond knights disappear amongst the brush and flowers.

They were a strange bunch, those two Diamond knights. Then again, she thought the entire country was filled with freaks.

'_Wait, what happened to the body?_' She quickly turned around, expecting to see a dead corpse splayed on the floor.

Instead all she saw was a single, broken clock.

'_Huh... Did they take the body and I just didn't see it, dropping the guy's clock by accident?_'

Still, the sight of the golden timepiece was unusual. There was just something very odd about it... She just could not put her finger on it...

"ARE YOU TELLING US YOU FAILED? THAT IS INEXCUSABLE!"

Allysia cringed at the sound of Vivaldi's screeching tone, quickly reminding her of her current duties. She quickly dove back into the maze, following the sound of the Heart Queen's strident voice...

"It must be around here somewhere. It couldn't have just vanished! You all are simply not looking hard enough!"

"Your majesty, w... we are trying!"

"That is not enough! We can't stand for such incompetence! OFF WITH YOUR-"

"Vivaldi!" The Heart royal and her two servants turned towards the foreigner. The brunette struggled to catch her breath, looking at the tiny congregation with confused eyes.

Vivaldi's hard amethysts fell on the two servants. "You both got lucky today. Go now and try again."

The servants squeaked in fear, quickly bowed, and scurried off. Vivaldi seated herself down in her chair, tiredly rubbing her throbbing temples.

"Vivaldi... is something wrong?" Allysia asked, placing herself in the seat across from her.

"It's missing." Allysia looked at the queen strangely, unsure what she means. "It's missing! We don't know how it just disappeared. Ever since the king gave it to Us, We have taken excellent care of it..."

"So your stuffed bear went missing?" Allysia clarified.

The Heart Queen limply nodded her head. "We swear that someone must have stolen it! There's just no way We would so carelessly misplace it."

"So, you sent the servants looking for your bear and this supposed perpetrator?"

"It is not a hypothetical situation. We _know_ someone must have took it. We have proof!" From her side, Vivaldi lifted her "proof", allowing it to fall to the table with a loud plunk. Allysia's eyes widened, gawking at a familiar blue gun.

"By your expression, We suppose We are right. This belongs to one of the mafia twins over at the Hatter residence, doesn't it?" Vivaldi spoke solemnly, her expression grave and firm.

"We found it beside two dead maids who were tidying Our room. Those twins do like to play games in Our territory with that Cheshire Cat. It seems they decided to play this one game a bit too far." Vivaldi's lips pressed into a thin line, violet eyes glowering at the firearm. "Usually, We do not bother the Hatter over his subordinates' behavior, but this is the last straw. We cannot stand larceny."

Allysia then defended, "But maybe it's not the Hatters. Didn't the Diamonds visit? Perhaps they had something to do with this mess?"

They definitely seemed more likely than the Hatters, more specifically Chalice. She could imagine that psycho girl sneaking in and stealing the bear...

"It's quite unlikely. After Chalice spoke with Us, We had one of Our maids escort the woman out. Our soldiers had verified to Us that Sayer remained in Our gardens. Despite who did it, We do not plan on making too much of a fuss about it."

Allysia was curious by such a statement, looking at her with a questioning look.

"The different territories are already on tenuous terms, scuffling to retain our territory boundaries as well as expand if possible. What we have in this country is a semblance of peace, and the leaders prefer to maintain such a state. Turmoil is needed in our country, but certainly not a full out war."

Allysia asked skeptically, "So just mentioning that your belonging was missing would be enough to cause a war?"

"Not exactly. If We broached the subject, words were surely fly and soon after bullets, regardless of how the well or badly situation unfolds. We territory leaders already dislike each other. If we annoy each more than usual, it is very possible conflict will arise." Vivaldi released a single, curt breath, pouring herself a single cup of tea. "Hmph! Losing Our belongings _and_ losing more employees? We already have enough troubles on Our plates..."

Allysia merely nodded her head and listened, looking down at the single item - Dee's gun. It was so strange... Was it really the Hatters that committed such a crime? The Diamonds were discounted, considering they had a sufficient alibi.

Considering this _was_ a secret, how could it have been either of them anyway? There was nothing to gain from it.

'_Then who else can it be?_'

Just as she began to mull over such a question, a strident voice rang in her ears. "There you are!"

Allysia squeaked in surprised, noticing a pair of arms wrap around her neck.

"Oh, my Ally-chan! I've been looking for you everywhere!" Peter exclaimed lovingly, nuzzling his cheek into her hair.

Allysia failed to hide her irritation. "Peter, get the hell away from me."

The White Rabbit failed to hear her, chanting her name underneath his breath as he continued to hug her. All Allysia could do was shrug her shoulders, wondering if Vivaldi would chide her if she performed an unladylike punch to Peter's face.

"Peter, leave Allysia alone. She is currently on duty as you should be," Vivaldi scowled, violet eyes narrowing into a cold leer.

Peter scoffed, holding Allysia even tighter, more possessively. "No way! You have been monopolizing her time for far too long! She has to help me with _my_ duties!"

"Haha! I don't think Ally wants to do either of those stuff." Allysia inwardly groaned, watching Ace emerge from the rose bush's depths and brush off errant petals from his hair. "She would much rather come camping with me, won't ya? It would be loads of fun!" Ace gave her a wanton wink, sending an unprecedented warmth to touch her cheeks.

"No way!" the two other role holders cried in unison, glaring at the cheery Ace.

As the three continued to argue about how her "services" would be best used, Allysia groaned, looking up the heavens as if to ask why it rained such cruel punishment on her of all people.

'_Today was going to be a long day... a very long day..._'

* * *

**A/N Notes:**

Haha… sorry for being gone so long… Saying that I've been very busy would be an understatement. Then I had to fix the format since the spacing was a bit off... *sigh*

But in those spare moments, I finally finished this one chapter! I'm a bit rusty in my writing, but at least it's something! I hope to update all my stories and possibly even complete some oneshots that have been on my mind. Yeah… that would take awhile. ^^;

Anyway thanks for reading~


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10****  
**

******Of Roses and Broken Clocks**

'_I never want to go through such a thing ever again!_' whined Allysia, dragging her tired feet through the dense forest.

Working, if you could even call it that, for the Hearts was complete and utter torture. How could such few time cycles feel like an insufferable eternity? Her head was pounding from their incessant arguing, her limbs aching from being pulled into three different directions by the Heart role holders. Each of them had wanted her all to themselves, not at all considering that she liked having her arms connected to her body. She barely did anything maid-related; she spent most of her time hiding than doing actual work.

'_At least it's over now. I can't believe I managed to sneak away before any of them made me stay there permanently._' She shuddered at the thought. '_Wait, until that Hatter hears what I have to say about selling my services! He better not consider doing it again!_'

...that is, if she managed to find her way back to the mansion. She sighed at the thought and continued walking through her sylvan surroundings, searching for even a glimpse of the Hatter gates. She sort of wished she hung around Heart Castle long enough to ask for directions. She did not know how close her directionally challenged mind would take her to the estate.

Thinking optimistically, she predicted that she would be able to get there in only about… a few days.

She felt her lungs exhale a deep sigh, dismayed by the very idea.

The foreigner paused in her place when her senses were allayed by the fragrant aroma of roses.

She blinked several times, regarding the red flowers curiously. The sight of them were odd... She didn't accidentally walk in circles and end up back in Heart Castle did she? She quickly surveyed her surroundings, scanning for any signs of a certain White Rabbit.

'_If I'm not in Heart territory... then just where am I?_'

Her curiosity got the better of her. She slowly picked up her feet and ventured deeper into the garden.

The sight of the flowers was entrancing. Each rose was so large and full, their petals the most vibrant shade of red she had ever seen. They were much more beautiful than any rose she had seen in her world, more beautiful than even _Vivaldi's_ roses. Whoever cared for these flowers must truly be a skilled gardener. She could tell the person put their heart and soul in raising each flower into the glorious rose that graced her very presence.

'_Hmph. But why waste his gardening talent on these kinds things?_'

Though she did admire their beauty, she still felt a hint of disdain. Allysia never liked roses. They were one romantic cliché that drove her insane. It always represented passion and romance, given as gifts to show how much one truly loves the other person.

'_Ha! Like love even exists anyway..._'

To her, roses were symbolic of everything that was _wrong_ with love. Like these roses, "love" is only a feeling of transient beauty. It is only a matter of time before the flower of "love" withers away and dies.

Her mind bitterly evoked an old memory, one that cemented her dislike of roses. The young brunette shook her head of such thoughts and continued walking forward.

Allysia abruptly halted in her place, nearly tripping into the thorny underbrush. She could not believe what she was seeing.

It was Mad Hatter himself.

The foreigner immediately realized that she _was_ in Hatter territory, but had wandered elsewhere into some other part of the grand estate. She felt herself release a breath of relief.

'_Why haven't I seen this massive garden before?_' In fact, why didn't Blood even bother showing it to her? She suddenly scowled at the thought. '_Afraid I'd make it all wither away my 'outsider' touch? Jerk..._'

Then she noticed that there was another person in the garden - a _woman_ to be exact.

'_Oh, I knew it. He _is _a player! I bet he was trying to add me to his extensive list of conquests..._' Her blood boiled at the very notion of it as she stood in her place, trying to get a better look of the mysterious woman and mentally document future blackmail material.

Suddenly, her breath was caught in her throat. Her eyes were wide, blue pools. Of all people, she never expected to see _her_ with a despicable man such as _him_.

'_What in the world is Vivaldi doing with Blood Dupre?_' She repressed a surprised squeak and quickly ducked lower, looking through a tiny opening in the rose bush to observe these two figures.

This was unfathomable. Was Blood really having an affair with Vivaldi?

'_It can't be! ...no! She's way out of his league!_' As she continued to stare at the two people, their proximity to each other certainly suggested the affirmative. She frowned and pitied the poor woman. Someone like Vivaldi can do better than him.

Still, she had to admit - they were a handsome looking pair. Blood had excellent taste. Any man would be lucky to be with someone like her, the subject of envy of any woman. Vivaldi was the epitome of a feminine perfection - resolute, graceful, beautiful...

'_Qualities I seem to lack._'

Her throat constricted at the thought as she watched the raven Hatter pluck a single rose from his garden and offer it to the Queen of Hearts. She seemed genuinely surprise by the gesture, but smiled, taking the red blossom from his hand and inhaling its fresh scent.

The sight struck another sensitive nerve. That was when a single memory surged to the forefront of her mind, forcing her to remember...

* * *

_"Ally, your date is finally here! Are you done yet?"_

_"Coming, mother!" Allysia quickly bolted down the stairs, but stopped short at the mirror. She was never one to care so much about her physical appearance, but now was an exception. She twisted and turned, consciously smoothing the wrinkled folds of her dress. She disliked wearing such garments and hated it when Eclaire insisted on making her wear then. Since he always liked it when she wore such attire, encouraged it even, she was willing to deal with it. Just for him._

_She frowned and asked, "Do I look alright, mother?"_

_Mrs. Gale floated to her side and assured her, "You look wonderful as always, Allysia. Don't worry! You and Terrence have been going out for quite some time. I'm sure he would like you no matter what you wore."_

_Allysia nodded her head in appreciation, excitedly making her way towards the entrance. She stopped for a moment in the hall and smiled. _

_There he was, waiting patiently by the doorway and holding a single rose in his hand. _

_'__For me.__' Her heart warmed at the sight. For as long as she dated him, he would always do the sweetest of things. Though she never liked roses, she thought she could make an exception just this once. _

_Before she could move towards him, she watched as his face lit up, his hazel eyes locked onto something else - someone else. _

_Eclaire was just passing through when Terrence walked into her path to greet her. Allysia froze in her place, unable to move a single muscle. Every point of her body felt numb. Everything fell silent. _

_All Allysia could do was stare when the rose,_her rose_, was offered to someone else. _

* * *

Cold chill settled over her heart, spreading down towards every limb in her body

'_I can never be like that..._'

She could never be _that_ kind of woman, someone like Vivaldi. She could never be the type to pull off such attire or even want to. She could never be entirely ladylike and proper like Vivaldi.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard she tried, she could never be the girl _he_ had wanted her to be.

'_Hmph... I wouldn't want to interrupt Blood and his romantic rendezvous!_' With mental snort, Allysia quietly dashed off back into the forest, fighting this stinging tightness in her throat...

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

She didn't know how long she was out, wandering aimlessly through Wonderland forest. All she did know was that she could not see Blood at the moment. The memories were still perceptible in her mind, and she was in no state to deal with him just yet. She needed to clear her head a bit, just calm the inner turmoil plaguing her mind.

What was up with men these days? Why were they always attracted to those kinds of women - beautiful and elegant? Why did they always want someone like that?

'_And never want someone as simple and plain as me?_' The thought made her eyes sting as she desperately tried to walk the notion off.

Her pace expedited. She lost all perception of her surroundings. She barely paid any attention to where she was going, narrowly clambering over roots and various other debris. If she did pay more attention, she certainly would have dodged a certain roadblock standing in her way.

"Ack!" The brunette stumbled down to the ground, falling roughly right onto her backside. She quickly snapped back into reality, the pain from the impact dully registering in her mind.

"Hahaha! Every time we meet like this alone, you always end up on the ground! Not a coordinate one, are you?"

She snapped her head up, meeting a pair of cheerful rubies.

"Ace?" Then her eyes widened, staring at the bright scarlet blotches staining his cloak. She released a shocked gasp. "Oh my god, Ace, are you alright? What happened to you?"

"What do you mean?" Ace curiously glanced down to his bloodied attire. "Oh... Haha! Ah, don't worry, Ally! This isn't _my_ blood if that's what you're wondering!"

The brunette foreigner released a breath she didn't even know she was holding. "Phew... Well that's a relie- Wait! What? That's not any better!"

The Heart Knight released a trill of laughter, offering a hand to help hoist her up. Allysia gratefully took it and pondered the thought. What in the world was Ace doing here in the middle of the forest... clad in a bloody cloak no less. For some reason, unlike Sayer, she held doubts that whatever Ace was doing, it wasn't for the glory of his queen.

"It's simply part of my second job!" Ace explained. Seeing her eyes widen, surprised by such a thought, he grinned and added, "You see, Ally, I work for Julius when I'm not doing something for Vivaldi! He gives me a job, and I complete it... taking a few people out along the way if I need to!"

Allysia's mind reeled back to her earlier days in Wonderland, evoking the image of the stolid, azure clock master. "You work for... Julius Monrey? Wait, I thought he was just a clock man?"

He gave an exuberant nod to the head. "Haha! Yep! Exactly! He's the guy that fixes broken clocks! That's the job he gets me to do - fetch these broken clocks for him!"

As if to prove his point, he showed her the contents of his sack, the clocks clinking together as they bared their broken faces to her.

'_But... why go through all that trouble to collect broken clocks?_'

The idea of it was baffling, and Ace's assistance towards something so mundane bewildered her even more. Ace was a _knight_ for god's sakes. Why participate in something so odd?

Regardless, she found herself dismayed at the sight of each clock. She didn't know why, but she found them all to be so tragic. It was as if each broken face represented a person, all mourning over the loss of something very important. The thought itself was silly, and she quickly pushed it to the back of her mind.

The knight leaned forward and whispered, "But you can't tell anyone about this! It's all a secret!"

"Then, why tell me?" she asked in honest curiosity.

He stood straight up and gave her his usual smile. "Haha, that's easy! It's because I know I can trust you to keep it. If you don't..." Allysia flinched back, her breath ceasing when his sword was mere inches away from her neck. Ace's expression retained its smile. "I'd have to kill you!"

The young girl held her breath, glancing over to the sharp edge of his blade and over to his smiling face. She swallowed hard.

She relaxed when Ace suddenly laughs and pulled his sword back into its sheath. "Haha! Just kidding~! Boy, you are easy to freak out!"

Allysia responded nothing more than a withering glare, leering at his jolly, laughing face.

But a part of seemed to question such a statement. Ace did seem like the fun, cheerful (albeit perverse) guy who loved to pull other's people's leg. Whether one took his teasing as a joke or an offense was his or her decision. There was a moment, a single inkling in her mind, warning her that perhaps despite his smiling face... he meant it.

_This place is very dangerous, yet you flounce around like there are no dangers whatsoever!_

Was Ace dangerous? Just like most citizens of Wonderland, she hadn't known him for very long. Maybe underneath that facade of joviality, stained with blood as deep red as his cloak, was someone she _should_ be afraid of?

"Oh, Ally! If you can spare a few moments, mind helping me out here?" She broke herself of her dark musings and answered with a single nod of her head, looking at him questioningly. "I'm actually one clock short... but I can't seem to find it anywhere! Can you maybe help me out? You're not going back now, are you?"

Allysia dropped her gaze for a moment. Going back to the Hatter Mansion? That seemed less than desirable. After all, Blood was occupied at the moment and probably wouldn't even notice her absence.

With a mental scoff, she returned her gaze to the red knight. "I suppose I can help you out. I've got time to spare before I return home."

Ace smiled wider. "Hahaha! Great! Ooh, I know! Let's make this more interesting! Let's make this a race! First person to find the clock gets a prize."

"...yeah. By the look in your eyes, looks like I definitely have to win."

She shivered at the thought. Then the two went off their separate ways, her blue eyes immediately scanning the vicinity. Just moments into her search, she was struck by the sheer difficulty of task.

'_Why the heck did I agree to this again? It's like looking for a needle in a haystack!_'

It was simply impossible to find one tiny clock in the midst of all this forest debris. She released a low sigh, carefully lumbering through some underbrush as she continued her search.

Then her body completely froze. Her mouth dropped at the sight of it. All she could stare was this strange conglomeration of black smoke, floating in open space.

She found herself completely stupefied. Her mouth slacked. It couldn't be... it just couldn't be a... a...

Soon, the shadow seemed to turn, facing her with its empty, blank veneer. Allysia simply stood there and met its gaze, alarmed yet fascinated. She was not the type to believe in that silly supernatural mumbo-jumbo. She had left those ridiculous musings to her cousin. Seeing a ghost now made her question just how "ridiculous" her ditzy cousin was.

Her muscles tensed, watching as the ghost drew nearer. A shadowy limb raised up, holding out to her a single, shining object. The broken clock.

She blinked in surprise and tentatively held her hand out. The black wraith dropped the clock into her hand and quickly drifted away. Her blue eyes glanced down at the broken timepiece then back to the open space, to where the ghost floated moments before.

Her fingers gently massaged her aching temples. '_I think I've seen almost everything… talking humanoid animals and now ghosts? Are there vampires and werewolves here too?_'

Shaking her head of such thoughts, she turned her head to see Ace ambling towards her through the forest debris, a tiny frown pulling down his lips.

"Hey! You found the clock before me!" The foreigner looked down to scrutinize the item in her hand. She then chuckled in realization, nodded her head, and placed the clock in Ace's bag. "Aw, no fair…You had help! How dare the afterimage cheat me of a win…"

Allysia perked up in interest. "Oh, so that's what that ghost-thing was called? An afterimage?"

Ace nodded his head. "They sort of help me and Julius out in clock collection."

"But what are afterimages exactly? What are so important about these clock anyway?" she asked, hundreds of other questions swirling in her inquisitive mind.

"Ah, you should actually talk to Julius about that stuff! He's much better at explaining things than I am!" he said, speaking in such an enigmatic way that she never expected possible from him.

Allysia pouted in response. "Hmph! Fine!"

The Heart Knight released a low rumble of laughter. "Ah, at least you're feeling better Ally! You seemed so frowny when I first saw you. Having some problems? I hope it wasn't from helping us out in the castle!"

Allysia froze in her place, wide eyes staring right into his smiling face. '_Enigmatic and perceptive? He surely isn't as thick-headed as I thought he was!_'

Still, her gaze dropped slightly, her lips forming a tight line. How could she possibly explain her experience to Ace? That she saw his Queen with the Hatter? About her own situation?

"If you don't wanna tell me yet, it's okay! I don't want to hassle you or anything." Allysia nodded her head gratefully. "But you know, your prize can make you feel better! A win is still a win! What do you want?"

"Huh... A prize..." Allysia looked up at sky, considering the limitless possibilities in her mind.

She stood very still, forcing herself to hold her ground when Ace suddenly leaned forward towards her.

"I'm sure I can give you whatever you want. Just name it." His crimson eyes glinted, sending unprecedented shivers down her spine. "So... what will it be, Ally? What do you want?"

"What do I w...want?"

She could no more think about what she wanted then she could breathe. His nose was mere inches before hers, his warm rubies gleaming with a light she failed to identify.

She didn't know why she was reacting in such a way. His statement was innocent after all. Why did her mind make something so harmless sound so... _perverse_?

At the very thought, blood rushed to her cheeks, placing an unbearable warmth on her face. She took a step back and said with what little composure she still had, "I think I'll get back to you on that. I really should be getting back before it gets too dark."

The knight frowned at the thought. "Aw, already? But I finally got to spend some time with you without those other two interrupting me! Hey, why don't you stay and camp with me for the night? It'll be a lot of fun!'

Allysia answered with an automatic, "No."

She knew better then to do something as dangerous as that. Her mother warned her of such things ever since she was young.

_No matter the circumstances, never share a tent alone with a man unless you are asking for harassment!_

She never questioned her mother's habit of offering the most peculiar advice to protect of virtue. It was all for good reason, Allysia assumed, and she understood what could happen to a woman when she was not careful. Even though the goofy Ace did not seem dangerous in the least, she still did not want to risk it.

The brown-haired knight blinked several times, genuinely confused by her abruptness, but did not press her further. "Okay then! Maybe another time! Want me to walk you there?"

"No, thank you. I think I can find my way myself," she spoke blandly, still irritated over the last time she walked with directionally challenged knight. With a slight wave, she bid the knight adieu and made her way back.

Inwardly, she grimaced, thinking of maybe reconsidering his offer. How in the world was she going to deal with Blood?

'_Well, maybe with my luck, it won't be too dark out, and he'll be some sort of vampire! Then I can just shove him out into the sun, and all my problems would be solved._'

Allysia sighed. If only it were that easy…

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Hey, guys, I'm home!" she called out the moment she entered the doorway. Out of nowhere, the twins flew to her side and wrapped their arms around her waist.

"Onee-chan, you were gone so long! We were so worried about you!" Dee cried.

"We thought you were supposed to get home earlier! We were about to go over to Heart and demand our onee-chan back!" Dum added, burying his head into her side.

"Ah, yeah… Sorry about that. I actually ran into some… obstacles along the way," she replied apologetically. "I hope you all didn't miss me too much."

The twins let the brunette go and sent each other a curious look, their lips pulling down into a frown.

Dee slowly answered, "Well, of course we did miss you a lot…"

"But Boss especially was cranky because you were gone so long." Dum finished slowly.

Allysia was struck by such a statement. "H… huh?"

"Allysia!" The three of them all turned their heads, watching as Elliot raced down the halls towards them. "Thank goodness you're home… we were worried sick about you!"

"Well, I'm here now... is there something you need from me?" she asked, releasing a low yawn. "Because I really could use some rest right now you know…"

"Shouldn't you tell Blood you're back though? He was being grouchy when you still weren't home," said Elliot, brows crinkling slightly. "I mean, we almost thought the Hearts were keeping you hostage or something."

"Pfft! Like I want to stay any longer in that madhouse," she grumbled quietly under her breath. She added more clearly, "I certainly do not want to see Blood now! How dare that man force me to go through such torture. I'll just talk to him in the morning."

With that final sentiment, Allysia harrumphed proudly and strode off into the halls.

Elliot glanced over to the Tweedle Twins, who only responded with a simple shrug of their shoulders. The fair-haired Mafioso released a sigh himself. He was hoping to make things as painless as possible… but it seemed it was not meant to be. The three mafiosos locked eyes and nodded their heads in resolution. If the brunette foreigner wanted to do things the hard way… then three can play it that game.

Suddenly, her breath left her lungs as she noticed her feet leave the ground, three bodies rushing her off into a completely different direction than where she intended to go.

With a flail of her limbs, the young brunette cried, "You three put me down now! I am not going to see Blood!"

"Sorry, onee-chan, but we're taking you to see Boss whether you like it or not!" the red-eyed twin told her ruefully.

The March Hare added, "It was our orders if we saw you to bring you to him… sorry."

Allysia did not plan on going anywhere without a fight. She violently flailed her limbs all around, desperately trying to break free of their iron grasp. Alas, the three of them were much too strong for her. Even the two children were able to overpower her.

When the three role holders reached their destination, they ungracefully dropped the foreigner on the floor inside and ran off.

"Ow... They could have given me a gentler landing at least..." She slowly picked herself up off the carpet floor, gently rubbing her sore nose from the abrupt fall.

"Ah, milady, you finally return home." The foreigner perked up and glanced over towards the source of the voice. Blood sat coolly near his desk, his expression unreadable.

Allysia scoffed, glaring at the empty doorway. "Yep, I'm home. Now, that you've seen me, I guess I will be going now..."

"Please bear with me for one moment, milady. I would like to speak to you about a certain matter," he said - ordered really.

She instinctively felt her muscles tense. '_Oh god... Did he find out that I saw him with Vivaldi?_'

That was one subject she wanted to avoid. She swallowed hard and struggled to retain her poise, awaiting for the Hatter to continue.

He then spoke airily, "I simply do not like the fact you were gone for such a prolonged period of time. You worried many of us with your absence."

Allysia could not help, but scoff, mumbling under breath, "Hmph. Worried about me? It surely didn't look as if you missed me all that much..."

She clamped her lips shut, mentally cursing herself. She sometimes had such a big mouth...

She did not want to talk about his relationship with Vivaldi just yet! Honestly, she was hoping to use it as some sort of blackmail material. Then there was the fact such thoughts reminded her of those irritating memories. She didn't want to talk about them. All she wanted to was just forget all about them, but now, that she accidentally said that...

'_Maybe he didn't hear me._' She was mumbling after all. Maybe she didn't speak it coherently enough for him to understand.

His brow arced at such a statement. "Huh? What do you mean?"

She inwardly cursed her luck and shrugged her shoulders. It looks like there was no turning back now. The foreigner swiftly recollected her poise and met his curious gaze head-on. She spat out, "Don't play dumb with me! I got lost coming back and saw you in that rose garden! You were there with the Queen of Hearts."

Silence manifested itself, thickening with the implications of her words. She did not add another word, allowing her statement to sink into his mind.

Blood remained very still as he processed her words. The raven-haired man did not flinch, did not even bat an eye. All he did was sit in contemplative silence.

His eyes narrowed, suspicion rising over his countenance. "Wait... What exactly did you see?"

She proudly crossed her arms. "Quite enough!"

"Which is...?"

"Damn it! Stop playing games with me! I know that you two are having a secret love affair! Don't lie to me!"

Blood's expression fell completely blank. "Secret love affair?"

At very thought, Blood released a rumble of laughter. Allysia stood there partially confused, partially annoyed.

"Ah, why outsiders always seem to get that impression I will never understand..." The planes of his face relaxed, looking at her with a flash of amusement. "Well, milady, feel free to think whatever you like. I doubt anyone would even believe something as ludicrous as that..."

"Ludicrous? Don't you dare call it ludicrous! I know what I saw. That close proximity, that rose you gave her? Tell me, if that isn't a form of affection, then was it it? Tell me what it is, Terrence!"

Her hand flew to her mouth, as if that simple action could possibly take back her words.

"Hm? What was that?" he asked, leaning forward from his desk in interest.

Allysia dropped her gaze to the floor and grasped the hem of her dress, trying desperately to come up with a way to escape her verbal blunder.

She forced out a yawn and quickly edged towards the door. "Wow, I don't know about you, but I'm tired! I'm going to get some shut-eye! Night!"

With that, Allysia ran out the door and escaped further interrogation. Blood merely sighed, deciding to let the subject drop... for now.

'_Honestly, why do people seem to enjoy comparing me to past men in their life?_'

First Alice complained that he looked exactly like her ex. Now the new foreigner insists that she sees aspects of her ex's personality in him. Was he born to be the personification of all women's ex-loves or something?

'_At least Allysia's case never fails to intrigue me._' After all, she never specified what portions of their personality were similar. To be quite frank, Blood thought himself as a man with decent traits so he couldn't understand what would be wrong with the other guy. '_But that's the fun part of this mystery. Finding it out piece by piece._'

If he demanded an answer right away, that would be much too easy. He planned on playing this game as long as he could... and Blood certainly planned on being victorious.

Dropping his gaze back to his paperwork, he felt his lips curve to a smirk. He will get the young lady to answer his questions... whether it is of her own volition or not.

* * *

**A/N Note:** Man, Deja vu all over again... Well this is half-fillery, half pertinent to the plot in it's own small way.

On a random note, now that all my major testing is over with (still got finals, but I'm trying not to think of that yet!) I'm really determined to finish this story… so I can properly go after zillions of other ideas ravaging my mind). Fingers crossed.

Thanks for reading~**  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

**Are You Willing to Play?**

"Whoa... What's going on here?" The moment Allysia passed through the Amusement Park gates, she was assaulted by the sounds of heavy construction. Masses of faceless workers jostled through the organized chaos, carrying a vast variety of tools and welding together large pieces of metal.

She gripped the package tighter and considered going back. She didn't want to bother them if they were busy building... whatever it was they were building. It wasn't like this package seemed too important. Gowland probably would survive if he received it the next day.

Just as she deliberated on her next course of action, she stopped at the sound of her name.

"Ally-chan!" Just as the foreigner began to turn around, Pierce rushed towards her and enveloped her in a tight hug. "Ally-chan finally came to visit!"

"Nice to... see you, too, Pierce," she rasped, trying to squirm herself free from his suffocating grasp.

"Oi, rat. Quit harassing her and get back to work!" Allysia inhaled deeply when the Dormouse loosened his grip. Boris had suddenly appeared beside her, pulling her out the Villier's arms. "Ally didn't come to see a stupid rodent like you anyway."

"Shut up, Boris, chu! I bet Ally-chan didn't come for you either... right, chu?"

Allysia separated herself from both boys, smoothing down her dress with her free hand. "Actually, I came here on business," she answered tersely. "Blood is making me run a delivery. I'm supposed to hand a package personally to Gowland."

"But why's the Hatter making you do that?" inquired Boris, golden eyes glinting in confusion.

Allysia responded with a sigh. "You don't really need to know why..."

Really! Just because she was late coming home, it didn't mean he had to put her to work as punishment! Or even worse. Risk the fragile sanctity of her eardrums if she had the misfortune to hear Gowland play.

'_Blood's probably using this to threaten me to keep my mouth shut about his situation. Hmph! Not like I plan on telling it anyway..._'

After all, who believe her anyway? It was far too absurd to speak of with only her eyes as her only form of evidence.

She then inquired, "So what's with all this anyway?"

"The old man decided to completely rebuild the ride that was destroyed before," Boris explained. "He's pretty excited about it too, saying this roller coaster is going to be ten times better than the original one!"

"I can see that." Her stomach clenched as she looked up, already feeling dizzy at the sheer enormity of the incomplete structure. "I guess you guys are all too busy now? I could always come back and deliver this another day..."

"No! You can't go just yet, chu!" Pierce gripped onto her arms, holding onto her tightly in fear she would leave. "You should deliver it now so we can hang out right after!"

"So do you know where he is then?"

Silence... The Dormouse looked up at Boris, who responded with nothing more than a shrug of his shoulders.

"Well, the dumb rat is right about one thing... We don't want you to go just yet. Though we don't know where the old man is, I'm sure we can find him if we split up." The Cheshire Cat hooked his arms around hers, pulling the foreigner into his chest. "Rat, you go by yourself to look for the old man while Allysia and I go search for him ourselves."

His one visible eye winked at her, sending an embarrassed warmth to touch her face.

Pierce tugged her back to him, insisting in a whiny voice, "Noo! Ally-chan, is coming with me, chu!"

"In your dreams! She's coming with me!"

"No! With me!"

"Actually, I'm not going with either of you." Both boys paused in their places and looked between them, noticing that Allysia had disappeared. They looked up to see the brunette looking at them with a cheeky smile on her face. "I think we'll cover more ground if we _all_ split up. See ya!"

Before either of the two could protest, Allysia was already gone, disappearing behind the thick mass of bodies.

'_Now, if I were the old man, where would I be?_' She moved quickly, dodging various construction equipment and workers. It seemed like a good place to start. She assumed Gowland was at the heart of the construction, directing and ordering the workers around. In theory, it was a good, sensible thought. The only problem was that she was too busy dodging the multitude of bodies to even look for the brightly-dressed man.

At the first opening she could find, Allysia blindly ducked out of the vast group of faceless bodies and ran out into blessed freedom. She released a sigh of relief, thankful to have finally liberate herself from the suffocating proximity.

She then regarded her surroundings in curiosity. She somehow exited the Amusement Park and was standing back outside in the forest. She frowned, dismayed by the idea of jumping back into the mess of bodies to continue her search. She could handle closed-in spaces, but that busy, suffocating proximity could make anyone claustrophobic.

Before she moved, something caught her eye. She was taken by a tiny spire of light, shining not too far from her current location. She was completely mesmerized.

'_What is that?_'

She ambled through the forest floor to get a better look, drawn to it like a moth to a flame.

Soon the tiny sparkle of light grew larger and larger until it finally towered over her. She gasped in wonder.

A glimmering castle stood before her, nearly blinding her with its bright walls. It seemed as if it was made up of opaque, blue glass - sparkling and delicate yet thick and strong. It made her feel so small and insignificant, slandering its pristine exterior with her plain presence.

She had never seen something so beautiful before... but even she knew never to trust things with a pretty face.

Despite its beauty, she could not deny this ominous sensation building in her mind, sending Goosebumps down her skin at such a sense of foreshadowing... Suddenly, her reverie shattered.

"Hello there!"

The foreigner jumped at the sound of the voice and yelped. She turned around to face the source of the voice.

Her lips contorted into a scowl, gazing into that familiar red-hair and grinning face. "What the... Why do you always have to appear out of nowhere and scare me like that, Joker?"

The red-haired clown grinned and replied, "It's just so fun! It's so easy to spook you since you're so unsuspecting. You reallyshould be on guard more."

"I'm sorry if I'm too busy being blinded by that castle to notice anything!" She scoffed, returning her attention to the structure before her. "But... just what is this anyway?"

"Oi! It isn't freakin' obvious? How could you not be able to tell since this sparkling atrocity fits his garish tastes..."

"Oh, Joker! Do not insult him like that! He is giving us a place to stay after all," said Joker, covering his mask from saying anymore. "Allysia hasn't met him quite yet so be nice..."

Allysia stood their in relative confusion. What was he saying? Garish? Sparkling...?

Suddenly she came to a realization. She looked back at the castle, its blinding walls of crystallized glass... sparkling just like a diamond.

"So that is the Castle of Diamonds?" she gasped out in surprise.

The red-haired nodded his head, clamping his hand even tighter over the mask's mouth to prevent it from uttering even more derisive remarks. "Yes, that is King Diamant's glorious Diamond Castle. He surely is a man of ostentatious tastes... I believe he took his new role and territory a bit too seriously. He had told us he wanted to outshine every territory in this country and place himself at everyone's attention."

"Hmph! With something this gaudy, he's lucky if his castle doesn't blind everyone first," the mask mumbled once Joker's hand left its face.

Her eyes returned to the glass structure, regarding the luminous walls once more with a startling sense of clarity. She inwardly kicked herself. How could she have not realized it sooner? This had to be a territory. It was much too extravagant and grandiose to be anything less. Then her heart dropped.

'_Considering this is Diamond territory, the role holders must be here as well, shouldn't they?_'

The thought unnerve her. The chances of seeing Chalice, that scary female knight, now was much higher. She couldn't even bear to think of meeting the Diamond King.

She forced herself to hide her horror over such thoughts and looked back at the clown. "So what did you mean before? You're actually living here?"

"As only a guest. Diamant was generous enough to offer his home to us... but you needn't worry about any of the role holders right now! They all left on some kind of business."

Allysia released a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness! Chalice scares me while I don't want to confront the king yet."

His single eye sparkled in amusement. The mask interjected, "What about Sayer? Doesn't he scare you at all?"

She contemplated such a remark. "I don't know... Though he's a little strange, I don't think he's that bad."

Joker nodded his head. "Interesting... Please keep that in mind while you're here. Who knows? Perhaps you will change your mind..."

Allysia only stared and sighed, not bothering to even question it. The man seemed so fond of speaking in cryptic and confusing ways. Whenever she got a decent answer from him, he presented her with yet another mystery, another question. Quite frankly, she was not in the mood for an even bigger headache.

Her eyes suddenly flew up to the sky, staring at a dark aberration floating in the placid skies. Her heart sank at the sight, her stomach coiling into thick knots.

"Is it supposed to storm today?"

Joker followed her gaze, staring at the same ominous cloud. She sensed amusement in his voice as he spoke, "I don't think so. The weather around here is usually very pleasant. It is only because of this new game even Mother Nature is thrown for a loop."

Allysia perked at the sound of that phrase. The game. She had heard it spoken many times prior…

_Your role is very great… one that is not meant for the faint of heart. I wonder what you would choose? Would you embrace your perilous destiny or run away from it? I guess we'll all find out as the game progresses…_

…And still she had little to know idea of what it all meant.

She asked, "Wait, what do you know about the game?" Joker responded nothing more than a knowing smile. She pressed further, "Is that the reason why you are here? When it is beyond your season?"

His single orb glittered in interest, surprised by such a statement. "Ah… so you know?" Allysia nodded her head. His lips curled even wider. "Well, as you said, now is not my time to appear… but for this particular round of the game, my presence was requested – demanded one could almost say. With a little rule bending – made easier considering I'm supposed to arrive soon anyway – I am now placed on the playing field as a mere pawn… just as we are all pawns in this fantastic new game."

"But who would call you out of the game? After all, there is no game without two people playing it."

"That is simply part of the game - for you to figure it out!"

"Then why the hell am I involved in this game?" She swallowed hard and spoke firmly, "Why am I even here? Why me? I never asked to be a part of this!" She paused another moment, thinking back to her mother and cousin. She exhaled sharply and swallowed a mouthful of air. "Once this is all over... Can I even go home?"

"Ah, you surely have quite a lot of questions! Do you really want to know?" Allysia flinched back when Joker leaned closer to her. "If you want to me to answer, you must answer a question of my own – are you willing to play?"

She suddenly lost all breath and froze in her place. Her voice came out in a whisper. "Wh... What?"

"Exactly what I said. Are you willing to play the game? Once I tell you what you want to know, there is no turning back. Everything will change... and I cannot insure that you will survive. You have seen a glimpse of our country and its predilection towards violence... Are you sure you still want to know? Are willing to take that risk?"

Allysia fell completely silent, mulling over his words. At first she dismissed his words as an elaborate bluff. He simply just wanted to frighten her like before. She waited a moment to hear the mask laugh at her overwhelming stupidity.

All that responded was silence. There was a moment in her mind when she scarcely realized that he perhaps was being deadly serious.

"Do you want to play? When you can give me an answer to that question, I'll happily answer yours."

That was the problem. She honestly didn't. All she wanted more than anything is to leave and wake up from this crazy dream. This place was just bizarre, too violent for her tastes.

'_But do I have a choice?_'

She again was struck by cruel reality. A tiny voice in mind made her question if this really was a dream. That maybe perhaps this was all real.

What happens if she refuses? Does that mean she's stuck here forever? Struggling to decipher the mysterious rules and objectives of this particular game? Does she lose her mother and Eclaire forever? That final sentiment placed a weight in her throat, leaving her completely speechless.

What was she to do? Was she to decline or accept? Was it worth the risk?

Before Allysia could even think about her response, a girlish squeal snapped her out of her musings.

"Joker-sama!"

The red-haired clown suddenly flinched, his skin blanching out the sound.

"Oh hell no..."

Before he could even think of escaping, he froze in her place, looking down to see a certain blue-haired female attach herself onto his waist.

Her blue eyes sparkled, her cheeks tinted with a slight red as she said, "Oh, Joker-sama, I'm so glad to see you!"

He strained his lips to a semblance of a smile. "Ah... Chalice. You finally return."

"Yes, my mission was much easier than I thought! I was planning on waiting for onii-san, but he was taking much too long! I got bored of waiting so I left without him!" At the evocation of a new thought, the redness in her cheeks became more pronounced; the grin on her mouth widened. "Joker-sama, were you waiting out here all this time for me?"

Joker grinned as he heard his mask respond with a blunt, "Hell no! Joker was just taking a walk to kill time since you were all out doing hell knows what."

"And I was passing some more time entertaining the young lady here."

Chalice's eyes sparked and snapped forward, zeroing on Allysia's form. Her eyes suddenly darkened and narrowed. The euphoric light dulled. She loftily straightened her posture. She took an almost defensive stance, refusing to offer a warmer reception.

"Ah, the foreigner. Nice to see you!" She tried to smile, but it only appeared like a forced, cold upturn of her lips.

Allysia replied with an awkward grin. "Nice to see you too, Chalice."

Like always, Chalice completely dismissed Allysia's presence and turned tow face Joker. She whined, "Why are you wasting time on her? Just because she's an outsider, it doesn't mean you have to be so cozy with her!"

"I was merely being friendly, Chalice. Nothing more and nothing less," he assured the irritated girl. "Now let's see... Oh. What's this?" He pulled out a small pouch from thin air, holding it up for all to see. Chalice gasped in shock, her cheeks draining of all color. "It seems that someone was having a bit too much fun at the Amusement Park, hmm?"

Chalice's pale cheeks reddened. She reached forward, trying to take the pouch out of his hands. Joker sidestepped her gracefully, moving out of the way of her probing hands.

"I believe you can return this to its proper owner." Allysia was startled, watching as the tiny pouch fell into her hands. She examined it in curiosity, feeling its contents quietly clink together.

She peeked inside. "Why in the world are their screws in here? Who would need these?"

Joker chuckled while Chalice responded with a pout. The red-haired clown replied, "I think it will be obvious in about 3... 2... 1..."

Then there was a dull crash. Allysia snapped her head towards the source. Part of the new roller coaster had sunk underneath the treetops, collapsing down with a thunderous crash.

She glanced down to the screws in her hand. Suddenly, they felt warm and heavy like blocks of hot, burning coal.

Joker chastised the Diamond Knight, "Now, I thought you outgrew such mischief? I dismiss the occasional pick pocketing, but performing such deadly pranks on another territory? Your king won't be very pleased..."

"Oh, Joker-sama, you know I'm very good at both of those things! I never once got caught for stealing or pranks even when I was little!" Chalice grinned wider, looking pleased about both those accomplishments. Seeing the man remain firm in his place, Chalice sighed. "Fine... I'll try a little harder to kick those old habits and act more 'knightly' like onii-san..."

"Tch... Like there's a chance in hell that either of those things will happen..."

Joker quickly covered his mask, but found himself sighing in agreement. "We should be going inside, Chalice. There's something I wanted to speak with Diamant about, but I suppose you would suffice for now."

Chalice beamed at the thought, eagerly wrapping her arms around the clown. He sighed defeatedly and smiled to Allysia. "I guess we will be taking our leave... Good day, Allysia."

"Yeah! Bye bye!" Chalice scuttled Joker over through the castle's crystal gates, before Allysia could offer a reply.

Joker stopped the female knight for a moment and turned towards the foreigner. "Oh... and one more thing. I believe that he would want this back as well."

Allysia blinked in confusion. Before she could ask for clarification, she reached for something gold flying through the air. She looked back to question the red-hair clown. Chalice and Joker had already disappeared.

'_What a mysterious guy... and annoying girl._'

She quickly dismissed the notion and looked down, wondering what Chalice could have possibly taken, why Joker is making her be the one to return it.

Her brown lashes fluttered in surprise, recognizing the familiar shape of a golden fish lying in her hand.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

The moment Allysia returned to the Amusement Park, she was struck by the screeches of the country's Dormouse.

"Aiyee! Ally-chan, save me!" Pierce ran and wrapped his arms around her, burying his tearful face into her shoulder. "The cat is scaring me again, chu!"

"Don't you dare whine to her, rat!" Boris stalked closer to them, his visible eye darkening into a menacing gold. Pointing to his bare ear, he spat out, "That rodent stole my earring!"

"I wouldn't do that, chu! I don't even want to be near him!" He sniffled into her shoulder, looking up at her with watery green eyes. "Ally-chan believes me, right?"

Before she could properly end this dilemma, Boris shouted, "You're such a liar! You flicked me in the friggin' ear then all of a sudden, it disappeared!"

"That's not my fault, chu! I didn't take it"

"If you didn't take it, rat, then where is it?"

"Actually... I think I know where it is..." At the sound of the foreigner's voice, both boys returned their gaze to her. Allysia released a ragged sigh, holding up a familiar golden accessory.

Boris's face lit up in delight, taking the item out of her hands. "Allysia, thank you so much! This is my favorite earring! Where did you find it?"

The brunette struggled to find the right words. "It's sort of complicated. You see, I had this run-in with Chalice and..."

"Say no more. Just mentioning the witch is enough." His eyes narrowed at the thought. "Ugly, thieving hag... Should have known _she_ would be involved."

"Nu-uh, chu! You would have just blamed me again!" Boris shot the mouse a harsh glare. Chills raced down the mouse's timid spine as he clung to her arm even tighter.

With a dramatic roll of her eyes, Allysia ignored their behavior and raised another item into the air. "And I also have these. I'm guessing these are screws and parts for the roller coaster."

"Oh! Thank goodness you found those! The old man was having a fit that they were missing!" exclaimed the pink cat.

"So you found him?"

The cat and mouse nodded their heads. Pierce released her arm and informed her, "Gowland is in his room to think about how to deal with this issue, chu. You can deliver both items, and then we can hang out, chu!"

Allysia nodded her head gratefully and dashed off. This entire day was exhausting; all she wanted to do was finish this mission and run back to rest... all the while complaining that Blood has been unfair these past few time cycles.

She did not want to worry any more about Chalice. Though they barely exchanged a few words, the knight's dislike for her was evident. Wasn't she the one that said they were all forced to "love" her? Then why did Chalice seem to disdain her presence... even more so when Joker was around? Was it possible that she possibly...?

'_...Nah! That's ridiculous!_'

She refused to think anymore on that worrisome topic. The cacophony of construction dulled to a low rumble when she finally entered into the housing complex. She quickly darted through the halls, searching high and low for the Amusement Park owner.

After asking an employee for directions, she finally found Gowland's room. Her hand hovered over the wood surface when she paused. There was a low tinkle of music, the gentle, dreamy melody of a violin.

Her hand dropped to her side. That could not be Gowland. It was musically impossible for something so gloriously crystal clear to be him. Her ears still rung in remembrance.

Doubting Gowland's instrumental skills, she peeked through the door's open crack, quietly pushing it ajar to get a better view.

And sure enough, she was correct. The violinist was not Gowland. The brightly garbed man stood before another male figure, the player in this whimsical serenade. She couldn't see very much, all she saw was a glimpse of the violinist's blue shirt, the auburn in his brown locks.

Soon, the performance ended with a soft, high note. The blue-shirted male placed the instrument to his side and waited for Gowland's response.

He closed his eyes in consideration and fell into a contemplative silence. "...Alright."

The violinist's shoulders sagged at that simple pronouncement. "Alright? Alright? Aw, why? I worked practiced so hard for it!"

"Exactly. You can't expect it to be amazing. You only started learning that instrument yesterday... and yet, you sound like that." Gowland's impassive expression splintered, appearing almost dismayed by such a thought. "While here I am practicing the violin for endless cycles yet I fail to even come close to that sound."

He froze in his place. Allysia felt herself stop breathing. Both orbs of green and blue looked down and saw the mysterious man wrap his arms around Gowland.

"Aw, don't feel bad about your ability! That's why I've always liked your music! You have something not many people have – heart. That will always be music to my ears."

Gowland blinked at such a simple proclamation, his green orbs lighting up at the very thought. He slowly wrapped is arms around the younger man, his expression withholding a firm, manly scowl.

Meanwhile, Allysia clamped her hands over her mouth.

'_Oh my god._'

Soon a new thought floated in her head. She considered dismissing it. After all, this circumstance was absolutely different!

'_Oh my god..._'

This was _nothing_ like Blood and Vivaldi's meeting together! They were both men after all. Completely and utterly unrelated.

'_Oh. My. God._' She quickly jolted out into the hallway, unable to unsee what she had saw. Gowland's face flushed an embarrassed red when the blur-shirted man placed a kiss on his cheek.

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'_Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my freakin' god!_'

She did not know what to make of what she saw. Gowland couldn't possibly swing _that_ way. He struck her as the strong, manly type, a complete straight arrow.

'_Then again... he could always be a seme..._'

She shook her head of the notion. She couldn't even bear the thought of seeing him again. She even shoved her package into a faceless's hands and dashed away to avoid that chance.

First, discovering that Chalice was a recovering kleptomaniac with a proclivity towards mischief? Then seeing Gowland with what could have been with his male lover?

She thought her head would explode if she bothered making sense of it all. After all, she might be seeing things. Maybe they were close relation, a brother, cousin, something.

It wasn't like she even wanted to openly broach the subject with him anyway. When she asked Blood about his affair, he gracefully evaded the subject and refused to give her a straight answer. She never thought of Gowland as quite as graceful. She imagined him as the kind of guy who'd shut her up with a shower of bullets.

"Oi, Allysia!" The foreigner perked up, watching two animal figures darting towards her. Boris asked her, "Did you find him?"

"Oh, I sure did..." She bit her lip and tentatively asked, "Hey, guys, do you know if a Gowland has any siblings? Any kinds of relation?"

Two pairs of eyes blinked blankly. Pierce answered confusedly, "N... Not that we know of, chu..."

Allysia nodded her head, hiding her horror underneath a veil of ennui. If that was true, then is it really possible that Gowland was...?

Allysia brushed the subject out her mind with a shake of her head.

Despite his confusion, Boris quickly changed subject. "You know, Allysia, now that you're done with your duties, maybe we can go have some real fun! Deal's a deal."

Allysia inwardly cursed herself, incredulous she forgot her plans to sneak out without their knowledge.

She sighed dismally and asked, "What would you like to do?"

Boris's golden eyes glittered at the question. He sidled closer to her and draped an arm around her shoulders. "I say we go to the haunted house! It's nice and secluded there... No one would bother us."

Looking at that sensuous smile, that dangerous glint in his eyes, her face heated slightly. "U...uh yeah... About that..."  
Allysia yelped when she felt the Dormouse attach to her arm. "Wah! A haunted house is way to scary, Ally-chan! Let's not go there!"

"No one invited you, rat!" Boris yelled at him.

Pierce ignored him completely, pulling the brunette out of Boris's arms. He said, "Let's go get something to eat, chu. I'm starving!"

"Now that's something I can't argue!" she agreed in delight.

The two figures continued walking forward, forgetting about a certain pink feline, his eyes glaring daggers into the mouse's back.

"Stupid rodent... Hey, wait up!" Boris dashed forward and ran after them.

* * *

A/N Notes: Haha! Go Pierce! xD

There's not much I feel like saying, (other than stating my surprise I finished this chapter rather quickly) BUT

Thanks for reading~


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

**Trip for Coffee**

_Tick tock. Tick tock._

Allysia sighed contently, her head resting lazily on her arms. Ever since she was a child, she adored the sound of clocks and their gentle ticking sound. It never failed to soothe her mind of any worries that plagued her, drawing her ever nearer to dreamy slumber...

"Hmph. Wake up. Now." Allysia lazily opened her eyes, turning her tired gaze to the blue-haired man. His glasses were held in his hands, his eyes hard and firm on her sleeping form. "Some help you have been... Why are you even here to help if all you do is nap?"

Allysia retorted, "I _am_ helping! It's just that Nightmare gave me a job first."

She rubbed her eyes groggily, remembering why she came to visit the Clover Tower in the first place. Since all the role holders left on some business, she decided to visit those that lived near the Tower. Seeing how busy they all seemed when she got there, she politely offered her services. It was more a courteous formality. She never expected to really get a job.

But Nightmare _did_ have a job for her, albeit a rather peculiar one.

"Nightmare wanted me to use whatever means necessary to get you to help out in some Clover event," she mused aloud.

"Which was rather dumb since I refused," Julius added tersely.

"Which then leaves me here. I'm not supposed to leave until you come to a more favorable decision." Allysia yawned and lazily shifted herself on the hard, bumpy surface. "And that leaves us at an impasse. Not that I mind really. The atmosphere here is so serene. It's been awhile since I could just relax."

Julius's gaze only grew harder. "More like be disruptive. You're 'relaxing' right on top of my screw driver."

Allysia blinked at the notion and lifted her body up, staring right at the aforementioned tool. She chuckled and handed it to him. "Ah, I was wondering why it was so bumpy!"

Julius took the tool and rolled his eyes, placing his glasses back on and continuing his work. A sleepy yawn escaped her throat. "Why's Nightmare so bent on asking you anyway? What's this Clover event about?"

"It's due to the upcoming April season. He has been asking me to help him with this special event," he replied apathetically. "He's just taking advantage of my presence while I'm actually hre."

"You're not always here? What do you mean?"

Julius then explained that he, Gowland, and his Amusement Park belong in the Country of Heart. Every time the April season comes, they are called into this country and be part of the festivities.

"We came much earlier than expected, but I suppose that is both in anticipation to the upcoming season and the formation of a new territory. It's formal politics that we greet and be acquainted with the new Diamond role holders." His brows furrowed together in consternation. "Hmph. It's all much too troublesome… it;s deterring me from my work."

Allysia nodded in understanding, mulling over his words. She smiled at the thought and inwardly found it fortunate that she was given such a rare opportunity to meet both men. She stretched herself out and plopped back down on the table, bright blue eyes continuing to watch him in wonder.

She had never seen a person so focused before. His gaze remained fixated on each timepiece, meticulously working to get them to make that soothing ticking sound she loved. The clock repair process wasn't as boring as she thought it would be, and, in fact, found it incredibly fascinating to behold.

Julius then glanced over to her, seeing her eyes sparkle in wonder and awe. He paused for a moment. "Why are you staring at me so intently?"

"I don't really know... It's just really cool to watch you!" she replied with a smile.

Julius's stoical expression did not change. "Alright... Well, to be frank, it's starting to make me rather uncomfortable."

She chuckled and apologized. Then Julius returned to his work, sighing deeply at her attention.

She turned her gaze over to the piles of clocks. It seemed as if there was an endless amount of them. He doesn't even seem close to finishing them all off. In fact, there had never been a moment when Julius wasn't busily working on these clocks.

Her brows knitted together. What was so special about them? Why did Ace go through the trouble to collect them? And why did Julius even work so hard to fix them?

Out of curiosity, she asked, "Julius, why are these clocks so special?"

The Clock Master stopped mid-screw, his expression not betraying a single emotion. "Why do you ask that?"

"Well, you have been working endlessly to fix all these clocks since I came here, and Ace goes through such trouble to collect them all for you. I'm just a little curious why you both do it," she replied. "He told me to ask you about these things since you were better at explaining things then he was."

His eyes narrowed, a nerve of irritation threatening to burst through his impassive countenance. "Lazy idiot... Leaving me with all the troublesome details..." He studied Allysia carefully, regarding that curious, patient gleam in her eyes. He sighed, dropped his tools, and extended his hand. "Give me your hand."

Allysia jolted upright at such a suggestion. "Eh? Why?"

"Just give me your hand, and you'll understand."

"Um, I'm not sure about this... Can't you just tell me why first?"

The azure-haired man exhaled sharply. "Oh for the love of!" He impatiently grabbed her hand and placed it over his heart.

The brunette flushed, embarrassed by the position. The act had drawn her closer to him, and she felt acutely aware of their proximity.

_Tick._

All initial embarrassment faded from her features when she felt it, a familiar vibration sounding in his chest. She hesitantly applied more pressure.

_Tick tock._

She was immediately fascinated. She had expected to feel the simple, rhythmic palpitations of a heartbeat. The thing that vibrated through his chest felt very much like the ticking clocks that sat on his table.

She gasped out in surprise. "Your... your heart... It feels like..."

"A clock?" Allysia nodded her head. Julius explained, "We are all merely clock pieces, fragments of time. When we die, we simply revert back to these clocks. My role in this world is to fix them and, in a sense, wind them back to life. We die, and we get replaced. It's as simple as that. Afterimages await to receive these clocks so they can start a new life. As for Ace, his job as clock collector entails that he must get these clocks through any means necessary, even killing others in the process."

Allysia was startled by such a realization, looking down at his ticking chest in wonder.

Suddenly, she frowned. She didn't think any of them are replaceable in any way. No one could replace a person. Each person she met – whether annoying or not – were all very special...

She perked up at a new thought. "Oh! So I guess that makes you even more special. You're the life-force that keeps everyone going! Without you, this world would be pretty empty!"

Julius was startled by the reception and flushed slightly. All he could do was stare at her, at her cheerful countenance, at the oddly familiar sparkle in her eyes...

He suddenly coughed into his hand. "You can remove your hand now."

She gasped in embarrassment and dropped her hand to her side. "Oh! Oops! Sorry!"

"No need for apologies." He quickly recollected himself, fussing consciously with his glasses. "Why don't you go fetch me a cup of coffee? If you are planning on staying here, you might as well as make yourself more useful."

The brunette nodded her head in acceptance and marched out the door.

As she walked through the silent halls, she released a breath of admiration. The interior of Clover Tower was breathtaking. The walls were painted an elegant green, outlined with various clover decals and designs. The floor beneath her was a smooth marble. It certainly suited a man of Nightmare's sophisticated tastes.

In retrospect, everything about this entire was amazing. If only her mother and Eclaire were there to this themselves…

'_Mother and Eclaire…_' Allysia's pace slowed to a halt. Her heart clenched at the thought.

This was all a dream. She had to keep reminding herself that. This was all one big, elaborate dream. Then again, if this was all a dream, why hadn't anyone woken her up yet? Did anyone even try? It felt like ages since she last fallen asleep.

'_Aren't they worried? Don't they miss me?_'

Considering the tightness squeezing her chest, she knew that she certainly did.

Allysia closed her eyes and commenced walking, willing this unease to disappear. Happy thoughts… she had to focus on happy thoughts…

A picture of her house entered her mind. She could recall the details exactly – the long line of books, the warmth of the hearth, the soothing tempo of her mother's grandfather clock.

_Tick._

She remembered herself staring at that very clock one day. She was left all alone, wondering where Eclaire was to give her company. Most of all, she was wondering where Terrence was. He had promised to give her visit, but he was late. Very late.

Just were could he be?

_Tock._

Seconds continued to pass by, closing in on a new hour, another hour without hearing a word from both Eclaire and Terrence. She consciously pulled at the hem of her dress and fussed with her unruly brown locks, hoping dimly to impress him when he saw her.

_Tick. Tock._

Then all of a sudden, she remembered Eclaire storming into the room, tears glistening in her eyes. Concerned, Allysia immediately went out to her and asked what was wrong.

Tick tock.

Then came her cousin's response.

"_Ally… I'm so sorry… We need to talk."_

_Tick tock! Ding!_

The sound of her mother's clock sounded the new hour, the time when Allysia's world shattered.

Her breath hitched. She viciously fought against the salty sting in her eyes. Her pace expedited, blinded by her own problems, this horrible memory. She was so absorbed in her own affairs that she walked right into a wall, stumbling back onto the hard floor.

She didn't bother getting up. She pulled her legs into her chest and dropped her head into her knees, trying her hardest not to cry.

"Hey." Allysia failed to respond, not hearing the person speak. She felt something poke her head. "Hey. You. What are you doing here?"

Startled, she snapped her head up and found herself staring at a familiar set of blue.

Her wet lashes fluttered in surprise. "S… Sayer?"

The Knight of Diamonds stood right above her, his arms crossed over his chest. His countenance remained cool and unwavering. She suddenly gasped in shock, noticing a spot of blood staining his cheek.

"Oh! Are you okay?"

Sayer looked at her confusedly before wiping his cheek. "Oh. I'm fine. Chalice and I were just finishing up out mission. This isn't my blood if that was what you were concerned about."

"Insurgents again?"

He nodded his head. "Considering we are still a newly established territory, we have to deal with an abundant amount of opposition. Once we firmly cement our presence and power amongst the people, the rebellion rate should reduce. It's a problem all territories face and we subordinates must deal with."

The foreigner nodded her head once in acknowledgement and dropped her gaze to her knees, returning to her own problems. There was no reason to burden the knight with her problems. She had to deal with it. All she could blame was herself.

"Are you… alright?"

Allysia did not bother responding, falling back into her sudden depression. Both remained there in complete silence. Sayer just stood there and observed her, noticing the sad gleam in her eyes and the tears streaming down her face.

He grunted. "Hn. I guess it can't be helped."

Allysia snapped out her reverie at the sound of clattering. Her eyes widened nervously, watching the blue knight unsheathe both of his blades and reached into his coat to retrieve a set of knives.

"S… S… Sayer?"

"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."

But she didn't. She anxiously pulled her legs tighter into her chest and pressed her back into the wall, watching as the knight held his two swords in one hand and the knives in the other. He through the daggers up into the air…

…and began to juggle.

She blinked. She could not believe what she was seeing. Sayer, the stern Knight of Diamonds, was actually _juggling_. He first juggled the set of knives in one hand and then added his blades in a clean, fluid motion.

The foreigner was not a person would could be impressed so easily, especially when it comes to such a common, theatrical act.

Somehow, she found herself completely amazed. The crystallized steel of the blades glittered beautifully underneath the overhead fluorescence. The level of his precision and technique was unlike anything she had ever seen. Despite the multitude of times she had seen this act, never had she been so captivated before.

"So cool," she breathed out in amazement, watery blue eyes widening in wonder.

Sayer glanced over to her for a moment and fought back a grin. "And now for the grand finale…"

He expertly tossed the knives high into the air, followed by his two swords. He expertly caught the knives in one hand and caught the falling swords cleanly back into their respective sheaths. He bowed. "And that concludes my performance."

She smiled widely and applauded the incredible feat. "Wow, that was amazing! I never knew you could do that!"

"It's nothing. It's simply a talent that I haven't used in quite some time…" He quickly recollected himself and placed his knives back into his coat. "So how do you feel now? Any better?"

She gawked at him in confusion and suddenly remembered. She promptly wiped her face dry and mentally laughed at herself. Because she was so engrossed on his performance, she had almost forgotten what had made her so upset in the first place…

"Hey, wait… were you trying to make me feel better, Sayer?"

The blue knight froze in his place, a touch of pink coloring his pale cheek. He coughed into his gloved hands and maintained his emotionless front. "It was merely a way for me to repay for your earlier kindness. I do not like being indebted to people. Since you seemed fairly upset, it was only proper that I try to cheer you up."

He quickly turned his head away, trying to hide a faint flush of embarrassment.

She smiled, touched by his thoughtfulness. Despite his heartless reputation and cold demeanor, perhaps he wasn't that bad, certainly not as bad as everyone made him out to be.

"You're a pretty good person, aren't you?" His body tensed. He snapped his gaze towards her smiling face. "Kind of like how a knight should be! Thank you very much!"

His eyes narrowed and scrutinized her countenance guardedly. His expression hardened and became blank. "Don't you fear me?"

She answered, "No… no, not really."

Her response came much faster than either had expected. Upon reflection and despite her misgivings about him, she realized she wasn't that afraid of him. His presence did make her a little nervous, but she was not completely scared of him.

"Well… I think you should be."

All air rushed out of her lungs when the knight lunged towards her, caging her body between his arms. "You are so trusting and naïve… You should be afraid. Everyone in this country is dangerous, especially me. Because of this burden I carry, this role I bear, I am dangerous."

Their gazes locked, his hard glacial orbs capturing her warm, blue ones. She could scarcely breathe. Her heart pounded wildly against her chest. The way he stared at her was so harsh and intimidating, striking fear into her very core.

He returned to his feet and released her. "My sister is going to be here at any moment. I suggest you leave now while you have a chance."

She timidly scrambled to her feet and dove into the adjacent hallway.

Sayer was so mysterious. One moment he appears to be a decently normal guy and the next he things like that – scare her and push her away. Why does he keep doing things like that? Though she's happy he's not one of those people who declare their unprecedented affections towards her, she had never done anything to deserve to be treated so coldly. Just like Chalice.

At the sound of the aforementioned female's voice, Allysia paused and slowly returned to the entrance of the hall. She ducked behind a piece of furniture, poked her head out, and listened.

"I see you got carried away… yet again. How many times must I tell you to stay focused on the mission?" he chastised her, regarding her appearance. Chalice only smiled at him, unperturbed by the fact that she was covered in blood. A shiver raced down the foreigner's spine.

"Ah, my bad! I can't help it. I just love these kinds of missions! They're so much fun!" she exclaimed.

"More like a horrible waste of time. You have the skills to take our targets down in one shot. There's no need to carve them to bits," he deadpanned, unimpressed by her enthusiasm.

The female knight stomped her foot and scoffed. "Well, I just needed to get my stress out. I've been so irritated lately!"

"With what?"

"With that foreigner! That's what!"

'_With me?_' She melded herself to the shadows, mentally thankful that he had warned her to get away while she had a chance. '_At least now I know that it isn't my imagination. Chalice really doesn't like me._'

Chalice continued her rant. "Everyone in this damn country only seem to care about her. They're all busy fawning and adoring her, worshipping the freakin' ground she walks on! It makes me _sick_."

Correction: Chalice abhors Allysia with a deep passion.

"Are you sure that I can't play with her just a bit?" the blue-haired girl asked with a pleading pout.

"No. We are under strict orders not to harm her by King Diamant," he retorted blandly.

Se whined, "But why? Does his majesty want to be brainwashed with her 'outsider charm' too? She poses as a threat to us! I don't get why he just won't let me…"

"That's enough. Diamant's word is final, and it isn't your place to question him or his judgment. Now, let's go."

And at that point, she heard enough. Just as the two began to make their leave, Allysia followed suit and quietly raced down the hall.

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"Phew! Finally, it's done!" She wiped her forehead and stared proudly at the two, steaming cups, mentally patting herself on the back for such a good job.

After her encounter with the Diamond role holders, she made her way to the kitchen to get some coffee. To her dismay, she could not find a single thing. All she found were the coffee beans.

"Who knew I actually had to make it from scratch?"

Not that she truly minded. Her mother had taught her such a valuable skill several times before. She just had never expected that she could actually put it to some good use.

"I hope this is okay…" She was about to pick the two cups up and return to Julius… when a dash of gray rushed into her room.

"Hide me!" The foreigner jumped back in surprise, looking down at the familiar gray-haired figure crouched down below her.

She put her hands on her hips and asked, "Nightmare, what are you doing here?"

The Clover Leader answered her with a loud shush. "Please be quiet! Pretend I'm not even here!"

"Huh? Why?"

"Oh. Allysia." She tore her gaze away and found Gray standing outside the doorway. "I'm sorry. Am I intruding?"

She shook her head. "No I'm actually about done. Is there something you need?"

"No, no exactly. I just wanted to know if you've seen my boss around."

"Nightmare? …why?"

The Lizard tiredly shrugged his shoulders. "It's just a constant, daily trial… My boss is extremely ill and he needs to be medicated. No matter what I do, he refuses to take it, complaining the medicine tastes awful or that the shots are painful."

"Wow… what a baby." Nightmare glanced up and glared at her, affronted by such a statement.

"Then there's the issue that he's even shirking his duties…" Gray sighed, running a tired hand through his hair. "And that's the reason why I need to find him. Have you seen him?"

Allysia remained silent and appeared thoughtful. She could almost feel Nightmare's gaze on her, begging her to help preserve his poor soul. The fact of the matter was that she didn't owe him anything. It would be so much easier if she just told Gray the truth and have him take the Caterpillar away. She glanced down, seeing him glare at her and mouthing to recant her decision.

Looking at the expression on his face, she wasn't in the mood to deal with his whining about her uncalled for treachery, being it in person or in her dreams. Finding some benevolence in her heart, she looked back up to Gray and said, "Sorry. I haven't seem around here. I promise to call for you if I do."

Gray released a soulfelt sigh. "Lazy man... Thank your for your time then." He then left the room to continue his search.

Once the Clover subordinate was gone, Nightmare jumped to his and said in relief. "Thank you for doing that. You certainly saved me," he said. He reached down, stole a cup of coffee, and drank it heartily.

"Hey! Don't take advantage of my kindness! I didn't make that extra cup for you!"

Nightmare finished the cup's contents with a breath of satisfaction, ironic the brunette even further. "Of course you didn't. You needed a little pick-me-up to help you recover from your encounter with the Diamond knights."

Allysia fell completely silent. Curse his mind reading abilities!

Nightmare airily assured her, "Just ignore Chalice. She cares for no one other than her king and brother. I wouldn't let it bother you... unless there's something else on your mind."

She nervously bit her lip and contemplated her response. He can easily read her mind. Why bother asking?

She sighed. "Just what's up with those two? Why do they act so strangely around me?"

"Again, Chalice's only motivations is her king and brother. Anyone who dares affect either of those two people tend to get on her bad side. The two Diamond knights are not foreign to outsiders... They know the effects they can have on our people. Chalice probably feels you threaten to break the people she dearly cares for."

"But that doesn't mean she can treat me like the plague," she grumbled irately under her breath.

She still considered his words. Considering she had yet to formally meet Diamant, perhaps Chalice hates her because of Sayer? That would be utterly ridiculous. She barely understood him, and he has been nothing more than distant with her, baffling her with those deep blue eyes.

She shivered, still confused who her assailant could be. None of role holders had such blue eyes. Chalice's eyes were too dark and deep to be the one who attacked her. That left her with Sayer and possibly the king... the later of which seemed unlikely.

"Hmm... It seems this new round is interesting indeed," he reflected quietly before adding, "Let me tell you something. There have been many rules bent in this game, and it's throwing things off kilter. That is one reason why Sayer is such a tortured soul, punishing himself in the only way he can."

"What do you mean?"

Nightmare only smiled. "Why don't you ask him yourself? You are affecting us, affecting him. He and his sister are known as the Blood Diamonds for a reason; they're infamous for killings without any hesitation or any forewarning. Sayer was also known as a cold-blooded killer, focused only on serving his king. The fact he's actually speaking to you is certainly different. But I must caution you! You should not trust either of them. They are much more dangerous to you than you realize."

She asked, "Is that supposed to be a hint?"

That perhaps her suspicions concerning Sayer were not as crazy as she made them out to be?

Nightmare's expression remained perfectly unreadable. "I just suggest staying away from the more dangerous role holders all together, like the Diamonds, Joker, Ace..."

"Huh? Why Ace?"

"Oh, I'm just being a bit overcautious! No reason. Please ignore my rambling," he replied. "Now I took enough of your time. Your job is to persuade Julius to accept my terms. April Season will be soon upon us, and I want us to be ready."

"Hey, I just came here for a visit. I shouldn't even do it since you never formally employed me. Why listen to a lazy worm who can't take a little bit of medicine anyway?"

He glared and pointed to the door. "...Just go."

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"Julius, I'm back!" she announced cheerfully as she walked through the threshold. Julius replied with a low grunt, his attention fixated on the broken timepiece. She placed the coffee down onto his desk. "I made it by scratch all by myself! I hope it's okay."

Julius did not utter another word, brought it up to his mouth, and took a sip.

He paused for a moment and blinked. His other hand released the screwdriver, attention focused on the coffee. He glanced over to the brunette and back to the cup, his countenance clearly puzzled.

"Um, is everything alright? Did I make it okay? I never really made it by scratch before, and I had trouble remembering everything I had to do..."

Julius did not respond. He stared at the mug for a long calculating moment. Then he scoffed.

"Decent. If I was grading it, it would be a 71."

"What? No way! That is _not_ 71 worth coffee! It's not that bad! If I was grading it I would at least give it a high seventy!" she shouted irately, offended by such a harsh appraisal. She knew it wouldn't be that great, but that was ridiculous.

"Now you're being much too loud," he said passively and took another quick sip. "Tasting it now, it may be even lower quality then I expected it to be..."

"Just shut up!" Julius scoffed at her offended expression and returned to his work, busily replacing on the clocks broken gears. "Well, do you need anything else? I'd be happy to assist you."

"No that's not..." Again, he paused in his place, mulling something over his mind. "Actually, there is this small favor you could do for me."

"Really what?"

He removed his glasses and met her gaze, studying the innocent curiosity in her eyes.

"The Hatter wouldn't mind if you're a little late going home, would he?"

* * *

A/N Notes: Sayer's a man of hidden talents. Ha… ha… :3

Thanks for reading~


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**Mutual Understanding**

The job was supposed to be simple. All Julius wanted her to do was guide Ace back to his home. The Clock Master had relegated this job to the previous foreigner, and he assumed Allysia could help the directionally challenged knight as well.

The moment they were outside, Ace was far too insistent on taking the lead and guiding _her_ home instead. He claimed to know the way to the castle… even though it may take him awhile to get there. Night was drawing nearer, and it would be "unknightly" if he let her go walk home by herself. Despite the country's placid appearance, Wonderland was a dangerous place to be in, especially once it got dark.

After much protest, Allysia eventually caved and accepted such logic. She still shuddered when she thought of the _last_ time she walked through this place by herself. She almost died.

She then foolishly accepted his guidance and stupidly believed him when he said he knew a special shortcut to reach the mansion.

"Hmph… Shortcut my ass… more like a shortcut to get us completely lost," she fumed quietly under her breath, glaring at the encompassing darkness. How stupid could she be? Now it's dark, and they were lost.

Ace emerged from the dank underbrush with a customary smile on his face. She raised an inquiring brow. "Well?"

The Red Knight chuckled and bashfully scratched his head. "…hahaha! I can't see a thing! It's really dark out!"

"What?" Ace could only smile and nod his head. Allysia groaned. "Oh my god! How could I have let you of all people be my guide? Now how are we going to get back?"

She groaned again in frustration, running a distraught hand through her hair. The knight chuckled at her behavior and gave her a cheerful pat on the back.

"Ah, lighten up. We'll get back! This is just a minor setback," he assured her.

"Oh yeah? How so?"

He considered her exasperation for a singular moment, appearing somewhat amused. He replied, "Well, we can't do much now since it's so dark. I figure we can wait until the morning… and make camp!"

He gestured over to his makeshift campsite with a proud flourish of his arm. Allysia stood in her place relatively dumbfounded. When did he make that? How was it humanly possible for the man to have a gigantic tent? Where could he even put it?

She stared at him in disbelief. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, I am! Come on!" He started forward a few steps before he abruptly halted. He looked back and noticed Allysia stand hesitantly in her place, holding her ground. "Hey, aren't you coming? You're not planning on walking, are you?"

Allysia considered his offer and shifted uncomfortably in her place. It just was so tempting. It was impractical to keep walking when it was so dark out. She wouldn't be able to navigate and would just get even more lost. Her mother's advice still rang in her head – to never be alone with a man in a tent.

But what other options did she have? Was it okay if she stayed there with Ace?

It wasn't like he was particularly bad guy. In fact, she considered him one of the normal people she had met in Wonderland, despite his perverted tendencies. What would be the harm if she camped out with him for one night?

She tiredly shrugged her shoulders in surrender, deciding to take a chance. She tentatively walked towards him.

His face lit up and grinned even wider. "Ah, there you go! Now why don't you come in? You must be exhausted!"

Allysia slowly headed inside the tent with Ace following right behind her. She accepted the blanket and pillow graciously, placing herself as far away as possible.

'_Is this really… the right choice?_' she wondered worriedly, watching Ace as he shrugged his overcoat off his broad shoulders. Realizing she was staring, she quickly dropped her gaze and fought a flush of embarrassment. She turned her head and regarded her surroundings.

No wonder her mother gave her such an unusual warning. Sitting inside the tent now, she noticed there was no possible way she could escape. She was trapped there with him. She shook her head and wondered why she was so worried. This was happy-go-lucky, dim-witted _Ace_! Not someone she should be concerned about…

"Why's you're face red?"

Allysia's body tensed and she snapped her head towards him. She cleared her throat and fought to dispel the heat rising in her cheeks.

"I don't know what you're talking about. You're just seeing things," she retorted proudly, settling herself underneath the blanket.

He chuckled in response. "Ah, Ally, you don't need to lie! I'm flattered! I never realized you were so conscious of me."

She sputtered in response, staring at him in complete disbelief. He did not just say what she thought he said! He only looked at her with a wide smile, his crimson eyes shining in the darkness.

She scoffed in response. "Ha! I never heard of something so ridiculous! I am not."

"Hahaha! Really? I mean, I would have understood. I am kind of surprised that you agreed to stay with me. I am a _man_ after all."

She appeared genuinely confused. "Huh? What do you mean?"

Ace chuckled, "Ah, I never realized that Ally was so naïve! Don't you understand? I am a man, and you are only a woman. In this kind of situation, you shouldn't be so trusting."

Allysia had no time to react. In a blink of an eye, Ace leapt on top of her, nestling his head into her chest. All blood shot up into her face, making it explode in a wide array of red. She wildly thrashed her limbs in an attempt to free herself. "You pervert! Get off of me!"

Ace ignored her attempts and absorbed her assaults, settling himself comfortably on top of her.

"Just so you know, I don't love you."

Such an abrupt statement caught her completely off guard. Her movements stilled as she glanced down, staring at him in disbelief.

"Yep! Unlike the others, I'm not stupid enough to fall for something like that! The only thing I really love is your heart."

She blinked. "My… heart?"

Seeing she was much too surprised to fight him off, he settled himself in a more comfortable position and pressed his ear against her chest. "Ever since Alice left, I missed this sound. It's so soothing and unique… so different from everything else in this entire country."

He released a sigh of contentment. Allysia merely stared at him, unsure how to exactly respond. Ace looked so calm and relax, just listening to the rhythmic beats of her heart. She had never seen him like this before.

Was her heart really that different? She frowned at the thought. Of course it was. She remembered what Julius had told her. Everyone had the same kind of clock hearts. They all thought they were all replaceable, nothing unique or special about them. Ace was probably no exception.

Her mouth twisted into a wry smile, mumbling, "Having a heart isn't that great… Sometimes a heart is just a burden because it can break so easily…"

Ace turned his attention towards the brunette, his gaze genuinely curious. Her blue eyes retained a melancholy gleam, looking off into empty space.

She shook it off and asked, "So why are you working for Julius? You're the Knight of Hearts! I don't think Vivaldi would be pleased if she heard about you doing these kinds of things."

"You'd be surprised…" The young knight sat himself up and settled himself by her side, looking at her with that usual jollity in his face. "I actually didn't even want to be a knight in the first place!'

The proclamation shocked her. "You didn't?"

Ace nodded his head and laid himself beside her. "Nope! No choice in the matter! It's a role I'm forced to play, no matter how pointless it is. That's why I took up a second job, hoping that I can be relieved of this role. Such a thing is against the rules, and I have to wear a disguise. It's still obvious that it's me."

"But Vivaldi won't let you."

Ace nodded his head. "It is against the rules to forsake your given role. No matter what I do, no matter how many jobs I take up, I am nothing more than the Knight of Hearts in this country. I'm forced to protect the pointless rules of this society."

Allysia absently nodded her head in understanding. Ace kept his gaze up on the tent ceiling, staring pensively at the fabric above. Such an omission twisted her heartstrings. The job of a knight was to protect its citizens from anything that could harm them, no matter the cost. The role was horribly cliché. Whenever she read a story with it, it was always the same thing. She grew to utterly loathe it.

Seeing a living example of a case that defied all clichés made her feel sick to her stomach. This was not some character from a fairytale or fantasy. Ace was real.

'_How could you protect people when you believe everyone's lives, including your own, are completely worthless?_' In his eyes, they were all completely replaceable, rendering his role superfluous. Why even bother? Ace then rebelled against his role, trying everything he could just to achieve that one thing he desired – freedom.

"Hahaha! Oops! I talked a bit too much! Sorry, I get it you don't understand…"

"Actually, I kind of do." He snapped his head towards her. His ruby eyes widened. Allysia's gaze drifted to the tent tops, a small smile tugging at her lips. "I don't entirely agree with everything you said, but I do understand one thing – how it feels to be forced to carry out a role. I had quite a few to deal with myself…"

Allysia closed her eyes for a moment, thinking to her life in her world. No matter what she did, it seemed like everyone wanted to change her, make her into anything but herself. Her father had wanted her to be someone who was perfect at everything, ready to take on his publishing company when he was gone. She was less than interested in the company and simply could not be this perfect girl his father had wanted her to be. Her cousin – no matter how she loved her – wanted her to be a perfect young lady, pleading her to dress in the way she wanted her to dress. Then all Terrence wanted her to be was…

She opened her eyes and quickly stopped that thought from materializing, pushing it down to the very recesses of her mind.

"In a sense, we both are stuck with these roles others impose on us, and no matter how hard we try, we can't get rid of them." Though she thought Ace was trying much harder than her. "It's almost funny… in that sense, I guess we are kindred spirits, huh?"

She chuckled at the thought. All Ace could do was stare at her, considering her words carefully in his mind.

Of course, Ace was still Ace. If anyone could ruin a moment, it surely would be him.

He could only respond in the one way he knew how.

"Hey, do you want to make out or something?"

Allysia intrinsically responded with a slap to his face. "What the hell! No! Why would you say that?"

"I don't know… you have to admit, Ally. That sounded like a come-on to me! I mean you never said _anything_ about the fact that I was lying so close to you!" He laughed heartily and evaded her next assault, rolling towards his side of the tent.

"Shut up! Just stay on your side and sleep already!"

"Haha! You don't have to be shy! I know that you want to sleep with me, Ally!"

Allysia didn't bother responding. She harrumphed and rolled over to her side, wanting nothing more than to punch that grin off his face.

* * *

**A/N Notes:** Ace, Ace, Ace… man do we love thee.

Not much to say. Just thanks for reading~


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

**Errands with the Twins**

"Ally…"

She stirred at the sound of her name, refusing to open her eyes. She was still too tired and wasn't ready to wake up just yet. Whoever was calling her could wait.

"Ally…"

Then her muscles tensed. That voice, the familiar, soft cadence… It could only be one person. Her eyes snapped open, surprised to see a blonde woman: Eclaire. Allysia's face lit up, and she ran forward to hug her.

"Eclaire! You have no idea how happy I am to see…" To her surprise, Eclaire evaded her and kept her distance from the brunette. Allysia stood in her place and stared at her cousin, puzzled. "E… Eclaire?"

"Why did you leave us?" her cousin said in a cold, monotone voice. "Why did you abandon your mother and me?"

"What are you talking about? I never did such a thing!" Allysia reached forward towards her, but Eclaire stepped back. Her hand retreated nervously to her side. Allysia just did not understand her behavior. Her cousin couldn't be mad at her. From her knowledge, she didn't do anything wrong. It didn't make any sense…

"Unforgivable… We will never forgive you…" Eclaire mumbled. Her green eyes shone with a harsh light, glaring at her through a fringe of blonde. Such a sight caused Allysia's stomach to twist. "How dare you leave us…"

"But I never left you! In fact, all I wanted to do was go back!" she shouted. Eclaire said nothing. With one final glare, Eclaire turned her back and walked away from her. "Please, you have to listen to me! Don't go!"

"_Lies…_" Allysia froze in her place. Standing before her now was her mother. "I never knew I raised a daughter who only lies…"

She suddenly felt herself step back, disturbed by the frightening gleam in her mother's eyes. "M… Mom?"

"I never expected my own flesh and blood would abandon me then lie about it… how _repulsive_."

"No, no! Mother, you misunderstand! It isn't like that!" Allysia cried desperately, her voice suddenly growing hoarse. She stilled when she felt Mrs. Gale's cold hand graze her cheek.

Her mother smiled cruelly. "You're just so selfish… I will _never_ forgive you for this."

The young brunette fought back a whimper and viciously blinked away her tears, turning her gaze elsewhere. All she could see was an incorporeal miasma of color. Her eyes widened, her aching heart calming in relief. She wasn't home; she was only dreaming.

Allysia shouted back, "No! You're not my mother, and she isn't Eclaire! They would never treat me like this! Never!"

The woman only smiled wider, disappearing before her very eyes. All Allysia could hear was an echo of her mother and cousin's voice, chanting, "_We will never forgive you… We will never forgive you…_"

"Stop it…" The chanting did not cease. Her breath hitched, and she clamped her hands over her ears. "Just stop it!"

"Allysia…"

"Go away! Stop tormenting me like this!"

"Allysia?"

She did not bother responding, trying to block these tormenting from her mind. This was all a dream… all part of her imagination…

"ONEE-CHAN!"

Allysia suddenly opened her eyes when something heavy landed on top of her.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

She groggily awoke from her nightmare, struggling to keep her breath even. It was just so realistic… it felt like she really _was_ speaking to Eclaire and her mother. Her heart still pounded against her chest, her stomach performing back flips at such a frightening dream. She dismissed it from her mind and looked down to see who had woken her up.

"Hi there, onee-chan!"

She blinked in surprise, staring down at two pairs of blue and red. "D… Dee? Dum? What in the world…?"

"_Yawn_, hey what's with all this racket? Ally and I were having such a nice nap…" Ace mumbled groggily, yawning loudly in his hand. The twins merely glared at the knight, holding onto Allysia even tighter. He rubbed his eyes and stared sleepily at the two twins. "Say… when did you three get here?"

'_Three?_' Other than Ace and her, there were only the twins. Just who was the third?

Then she was struck by a startling realization, answered by the thunderous sound of a gun.

Ace dodged the assault with ease and laughed. "Hahaha! Oh, you missed me!" Just as the tent opened, the Red Knight pulled out his blade and pointed it towards the unexpected intruder. "I thought you had better aim, Elliot!"

Elliot March scowled at his teasing, pointing his gun at the knight. "You bastard… how dare you! Where is she?"

The Knight chuckled and feigned ignorance. "Who are you talking about? Where's who?"

"Allysia, you idiot! I know you have her!"

"Elliot, I'm right here." His gaze snapped towards her, seeing the twins wrapped tightly around her. He sighed in relief and glared at the Heart Knight. "You sly bastard… how dare you kidnap her, and right in front of our faces! The entrance of the Hatter territory was right around the corner!"

The foreigner released a loud gasp of surprise and looked over to the Heart Knight. Her eyes narrowed. "Ace, I thought you said you couldn't see it!"

"Hahaha! Of course not! It was so dark after all! I could barely see my hand in front of my face last night!" he admitted innocently, that carefree smile still on his face.

Her blue orbs boiled over, darkening into a torrential storm. That sly, perverted knight… how dare he purposefully place her in such a precarious situation…

Elliot then announced, "So, we will be taking her back to wear she belongs – _with us_."

"Oh, I don't think so! I am supposed to be her escort, and I plan on bringing her back!" he argued, his expression pleasant yet adamant.

"No way in hell am I letting the likes of you bring her back! Knowing you, you would be wandering around for days before you two catch a glimpse of our gates!"

"Ah, at least I think I'm better company than a grumpy rabbit like you!"

At that statement, a nerve peeked through his temples. Elliot's face fell impeccably blank. "_What did you say?_"

"Uh-oh… The knight shouldn't have said that… It looks like now's a good time for our escape plan, right brother?"

"I'm already on it." Dee separated himself and swiped his knife through the tent, creating a large, gaping hole.

Allysia gasped. "Dee, why'd you do that for? That wasn't necessary!"

The blue twin assured her, "Oh I wouldn't worry about that, onee-chan! After those two are through, I'm sure that there would be dozens more …"

She was genuinely confused. Elliot did seem rather sensitive (and delusional) whenever he was referred to as a rabbit, but he couldn't be too high-strung about it.

"I said you were a _rabbit_, Mr. Rabbit!" Ace said with a wide smile on his face. Elliot's face burned with rage.

…wasn't he?

Dum hurried through the opening. "Now, let's go, onee-chan. Come with us."

Allysia followed the two without any protest, cringing at the horrible crescendo of bullets.

Note to self: Never, _ever_ refer to Elliot as a rabbit again.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"So, why I am in town with you two?" Allysia asked the twins, each of them walking on both of her sides.

"Well, Boss gave us an errand, and we were to buy some supplies!" answered the red twin.

"We thought it would be more fun if our onee-chan came with us!" added his twin brother, his blue eyes sparkling at the thought.

"Well instead of making me tag along with you two to help gather provisions," she said, shaking her bag slightly as emphasis, "Maybe you two should have helped Elliot back there instead."

The twins snorted at such a suggestion. "Why would we do that? Newbie-hare can take care of himself!"

"Plus, he's always mean to us! He doesn't deserve our help… like we would!"

Allysia replied with only a sigh, staring at the twins as their cheeks puffed up in irritation. Of course…

Though, she had to admit, spending time with the two tykes was a refreshing change of pace. Despite of their mafia heritage, she found Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum to be the cutest children she had ever seen. She had never seen siblings so close and who got along so well. They always were considerate to her, making sure she was always by their sides. Those two always ran energetically to their destination, insisting on carrying the heavier bags despite her protests otherwise.

Being near those sweet kids sparked some latent maternal instinct within her, reminding her of her longings for children of her own. Though no one would ever expect it from a cynical realist like herself, she absolutely loved kids… and she preferred to keep it that way. Eclaire would tease her endlessly if she caught wind of such secret desires.

Spending her day with the twins was unexpectedly relaxing. The kids were much sweeter and cuter than she expected them to be… and deep down, even in their most mischevious of moments, she didn't think they were bad enough to cause such destruction at Heart Castle.

'_Did they really steal her bear and kill those servants?_' Though they were perfectly capable, she wanted to belief they wouldn't do such a thing. The facts still stood. She saw Dee's gun in Vivaldi's hand as evidence.

"Hey guys… I heard you like playing games with Boris at Heart Castle, right?" she asked.

The twins nodded their heads. Dum said, "Yeah! It's so much fun playing with those card soldiers in the garden! It's like target practice!"

"Plus, the Queen gets upset so easily. It's really funny!" Dee added with a chuckle.

"Really? Well have you guys ever tried pushing Vivaldi's buttons even further?" Their paces slowed. The two stared at her, bright red and blue gazing up at her in confusion. "What I means was… Did you guys think og moving your games inside, 'playing' with the servants in there and taking something from Vivaldi just to tick her off?"

Dark brows furrowed in confusion. "No… We would never push it that far. That Heart witch would be furious, especially if we stole something from her."

"Plus, Boss would get in trouble if we did anything like that! We don't want to get Boss in trouble." Allysia nodded her head in understanding. "…If she said anything to you, we promise we didn't do it!"

"Yeah, if that queen has been telling such things, I bet she has my gun too!"

The foreigner stared at Dee in surprise. "Your gun is missing?"

He nodded and grumpily said, "Yeah! One moment I had it in the gardens, and the next moment, it's gone! I tried looking for it everywhere, but I couldn't find it! I bet that royal hag found it and is hiding it from me!"

"We're not going to complain though. We have extras at home, Dum said. "It'd be annoying if we mentioned it anyway. If we did, both territories would get upset, and we'd have this whole mess to deal with!"

'_Because one wrong word can cause an entire war._'

Seeing the tinge of annoyance still on their faces, she realized just how tenuous the territories' relationships were. Thefts, killings, this underlying antagonism between the territories… was someone really trying to push everyone to war? She believed the twins when they said they didn't do it. There was no reason for them to lie. Just who'd do something like that?

'_And is that force related to that person who tried to attacked me earlier?_'

"Miss Allysia?"

At the sound of her name, the trio froze in their place. Standing before them was a large group of card soliders.

She regarded them warily before answering. "Yes?"

One spoke up. "We are under orders from Lord White to bring him the foreigner if we see her. Miss Allysia, please cooperate and come with us."

The twins stood protectively around her. "No way! Onee-chan is staying with us! There's no way she's going anywhere with you guys!"

'_Especially to Peter._' She sighed at the rabbit's sudden desperation. She could admit that she hadn't seen the White Rabbit for quite some time. She managed to survive her last visit to Heart Castle, and she wanted to keep it that way.

If he acted more normally and didn't keep trying to break her ribs every time he saw her, she wouldn't mind hanging around him.

'_But must he be so desperate for my company that he has to order a whole _battalion_ of card soldiers to capture me on sight?_'

She supposed he was.

The card soldiers remained unperturbed by the twin's proclamations, staring at them with a blank, eyeless gaze. "We are to follow our superior's orders, using whatever means necessary."

"Not that I understand what our Prime Minister sees in the outsider, considering she _is_ the Hatter mafia's harlot…" One added absently.

That soldier then found himself knocked to the ground when Allysia punched him squarely in the face. She snapped at him, "What the hell did you just call me? I am _not_ the Hatter's whore! No _freakin'_ way! Just _try_ saying that to my face again, you bastard!"

"Onee-chan, please calm down." All ire slowly evaporated from her veins. She turned her attention to the twins as they smiled at her. "We will handle this!"

Dee and Dum turned to face each other, looking in a way only the other would understand. They nodded and took stance, holding one hand behind their backs.

"Ready? 1… 2… 3!" The two dramatically swung their hand around and placed them in front for the other to see. Dee's hand were tightly clenched while Dum's were wide open.

The red-eyed boy pumped his fist into the air and cheered victoriously. "Woo-hoo! I won! Paper beats rock!"

"Aw… that's not fair… I wanted to do it for onee-chan," the blue-eyed child whined. Dum only stuck his tongue out at him. Dee sighed, took his brother's bag, and relinquished his gun. "Just don't have too much fun! Boss is expecting us back soon!"

Dum smiled, assuring him he won't. Dee nudged Allysia through an opening of soldiers. "Come on, onee-chan. We still have one or two items we need to buy before we go back. My brother can handle himself."

Allysia remained silent and nodded her head, following the boy without a single complaint. It wasn't like she was stupid. She already had a very good idea what Dum had planned to do. When it all came down to it, those two were notorious to all as the Bloody Twins.

Once the walked far enough away, Allysia tried her hardest not flinch when she heard the first sound of gunfire.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Just as they had finished purchasing the last of their supplies, Dum returned to them with a bright smile on his face. "Brother, onee-chan, I'm back! Sorry for taking so long, but I'm sure those guys won't bother us any more."

Allysia regarded him for a long moment, her expression blank and impassive. She dryly said, "Yeah, I'd think so. It's kind of hard to bother someone when they're dead."

Both twins flinched and looked at the young woman. "How'd you find out?"

"For one thing, I'm not blind. Even though you are wearing red, I can still see those blood stains."

Both of the twins cried out in surprise, studying Dum's still bloodied attire. He groaned, believing he had cleaned it all off when he was finished.

Allysia placed her only free hand on her hip and scolded them. "I don't like you guys using violence to solve your problems! There is a better way to deal with those card soldiers then shooting their brains out!"

"Aw, so you _didn't_ bother using our new dagger on them?" Dee whined while Dum shot him a stern glare, promptly shutting him up.

They both froze in their place, cowering at the foreigner's suddenly frightening aura. "Just stop doing these kinds of things! Not only are you guys hurting others, but you're hurting yourselves! Have I made myself clear?"

The twins forlornly dropped their heads, shifting uncomfortably in their places. "Yes, onee-chan… But that's why one of us took you away. We knew if you saw it would make you unhappy."

"We just didn't like someone else insulting you like that. We didn't want onee-chan to be unhappy or to be mad at us…"

The brunette tensed, finding her heart touched by their consideration. She harrumphed and dug her hand into her bag, keeping her countenance perfectly void of emotion. "No matter your intentions, I still do not like it when you guys resort to violence. There are better ways to deal with things."

The twins flinched and kept their gazes downcast, bracing themselves for further verbal lashing.

"…but no matter what, I can never be really mad at you guys." Red and blue blinked in surprise, seeing two large cookies in front of their faces. They looked up at Allysia, their gaze curious. She turned her face away from her, more so to hide the softness in her features as well as a rising blush on her face. "When you guys weren't looking, I bought you two cookies, one for each. I was planning on giving them to you when we got back, but since you guys were trying to defend ne, I figured I can give it you now."

Their eyes sparkled brightly, their lips curving into big, wide smiles. They eagerly took the cookies. "Oh, thank you so much, onee-chan!"

"Just promise me you won't do something stupid like that again, or else I won't be as lenient. Okay?" The twins nodded their heads in understanding, ravenously chomping on their treat. "Good. Now let's go back."

The three of them commenced walking forward. The twins settled themselves on either side of the foreigner, sidling uncomfortably close to her. She fought to retain her poise and dispel this rising heat in her face.

She mentally cursed herself. Who knew she was such a little softy when it came to kids?

'_This is so bad for my image… I would never hear the end of this if my cousin saw this…_'

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

The moment the three entered the Hatter's office, Elliot shouted, "Why were you guys out so long? I was worried sick about Allysia! I thought that stupid knight kidnapped her again!"

The twins appeared insulted and glared at him. "Shut up, newbie-hare! We just brought Allysia with us while we went out for our mission."

"But she could have gotten hurt. _Or worse!_ Someone could have taken her away again!"

At the suggestion, the twins clung to the foreigner's arms and shouted, "No! We took really good care of her. We wouldn't let anything happen to our mommy!"

Everything fell completely silent, turning their attention to the twins. Even Blood, who was busily finishing some paperwork on his desk, looked up and stared.

Allysia was especially shocked, stammering, "M…. mommy? B… but I thought I was onee-chan?"

"Oh course! You are always onee-chan to us, but today were so nice and caring… just like a mommy would!"

"So we also see you as our mommy too, onee-chan."

Allysia wasn't sure what to say by their admission, torn between shock and maternal pride. A small part of her was flattered they thought of her as their mother, considering they did not seem to have a mother in the first place.

"But… if you consider Allysia as your mother, then who's the father?" Elliot asked.

"Boss!" they replied, smiles appearing on their faces.

The young brunette almost fell over in shock. What?

Elliot nodded his head in agreement. "Ah, yes I agree!"

Blood did not offer a response, grinning coolly at his seat.

She had never heard anything more absurd. She managed to separate herself from the twins and stomped to Blood's side. "No way! No way in _hell_ should those kids consider you to be their father, especially when they consider me as their mother! I will not have it."

"Oh? Why not, milady? I'd like to think to that I'd make both an excellent father and husband," he answered smoothly, his calm emeralds meeting her heated sapphires.

That only made her blood boil. She slammed her palm into his desk and shouted in his face, "Since when was marriage part of this conversation? I just can't imagine sharing something like a parental role let alone being _married_ with you! It is because of your horrible influence that these poor kids are so tainted."

Her muscles tensed when he gently grabbed her chin in between his fingers. "Your words wound me. I never knew you had so little faith in my abilities. I can assure you if I was your husband, I'd make sure you are _satisfied_ in every respect."

Her eyes darkened at his implications, her cheeks burning a bright crimson. She was too angry to say anymore. Bemused by her expression, Blood continued to tease her even further, gently brushing his gloved digits against her cheek and traveling down to toy with her locket.

She had reached her limit. She abruptly jerked away from him. "Stop kidding around!"

Then there was a clatter. Allysia's eyes widened when she saw something silver fall onto Blood's desk, attached to a long leather chain. She immediately felt her neck, eyes widening upon realizing it was bare.

"Oh, no! My chain broke _again_," she said in dismay, quickly scooping her locket and chain into her hands.

"If you'd like, I can get it fixed for you," Blood offered.

"No. It's mine, and I will do it myself," she said and walked towards the door. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be leaving. I hope you make good use with the supplies the twins and I bought. Not that I understand particularly why need all those anyway…"

With that, Allysia stormed out of the room. The twins looked at the empty doorway and asked worriedly, "Boss, is onee-chan okay?"

"I assure you she's fine," he said, pondering something in his mind. Allysia just was so stubborn. Why didn't she just accept his offer? He wouldn't mind replacing that broken chain with a newer, nicer one…

His right-hand man's voice broke him of his musings. "Hey, so is now a good time to prepare for tomorrow's festivities?"

Blood composed himself and answered with a slight nod.

* * *

**A/N Notes:** Yep, bonding with the twins... there's no better way to spend one's day (just ignore the impending bloodshed).

And if you squint really hard, you'll see some points that are of plot significance in this chapter. I try to make it so every chapter is pertinent to the story in its tiny way - some more than others, but yeah. :3

Thanks for reading~


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

**Happy Un-birthday**

She had never seen so many boxes in her life. All throughout the room there were gifts of various shapes and sizes, wrapped with a delicate, colorful paper. There were large ones, and small ones, ones with flamboyant wrapping paper, and others covered in simple pastels. Throughout most of the morning, the servants were busily delivering the presents to the Hatter's office... and Allysia was foolish enough to pity them and help out.

"And that's the last of it!" she huffed and plopped a heavy box down onto the floor. Her arms ached. Her breath came out in erratic intervals. She inhaled a deep breath. "Good god... I hope I never have to see any more of these damn boxes... It's not even your birthday!"

Blood lifted his gaze from his paperwork, seeing the exhausted foreigner collapse onto the floor and glare at the surrounding presents. His lips quirked up in amusement. "Well, it's because we are celebrating an _un_birthday. Because of this country's erratic time cycles, we do not celebrate birthdays. Here, it is simply easier and much more interesting to choose a day and celebrate your unbirthday."

Allysia scoffed, thinking it was just some lame excuse to have a day where everyone could glorify the Hatter's name. Damn that Mafioso and his arrogance... Just looking at the wrapping alone, she could tell the contents were extravagant. Most of these presents were probably from mafia suck-ups and his admirers. The thought only served to irritate her even more.

She rose to her feet and stared at this one tiny box. It was covered in white wrapping paper, cutely tied together by a satin bow. Even the signature was completely adorable.

Her brow twitched. '_It's too cute... I hate it. I hope whatever's in here is really cheap and ugly._'

Whoever this person was - Snow, she noted - certainly went overboard with her present. She looked behind the tiny box to see the other half of this woman's present. Four dozen bouquets of white flowers? Seriously?

"Why do women bother giving you such things? You're a jerk!" she asked in disbelief.

"Why? Jealous of my vast array of admirers?"

She snorted at such absurdity. "Ha! Absolutely not! I just can't believe people actually give you gifts this extravagant. Girls like this Snow need to tone it down!"

The Hatter coolly examined the present in her hand. "Oh, that one person sends such tokens occasionally. Miss Snow is an enthusiastic admirer of mine, and that is all."

Allysia scoffed and carelessly tossed the box back into the pile. "Yeah. An annoying one at that."

He sighed and appeared even more ragged by the thought. "I unfortunately cannot disagree. I have been trying to end her interests in me, but she's simply too... set in her infatuations. She lives in another country some distance from us so all she can do is send an occasional gift or letter."

"Huh... Really... There are other countries besides Clover?"

He nodded his head. Many of the role holders originated from Heart and only came to Clover because that was what the rules told them to do. The only time they had to travel to Snow's country is far and few, and she needn't worry herself over it.

Allysia mulled over the information and wasn't quite sure how she felt about it. On one hand, she was pleased that she probably didn't have to worry about meeting such an annoying woman. On the other hand... she found herself momentarily disappointed she could not knock some proper sense into her.

'_After all, is he really someone she wants to waste her heart on? There must be better prospects in the place she's from... Then again, anything's probably better than him and his arrogance._'

"Now that's enough of that. I'm more interested in what you got me." Allysia's lashes fluttered, staring at him in apparent confusion. He clarified, "I'm curious to know what present you got me."

The foreigner's expression remained unmoved. "Why would I do that?"

"It is only common courtesy to offer a present on such an occasion, especially if it is for the leader of your specific place of stay." Still, Allysia's expression remained perfectly blank, hinted with disbelief. "It's alright if you didn't. Being in the pleasure of your presence each day is enough, milady."

The brunette scoffed. "Yeah... Well, I'm going to leave now before one of the servants brings in another box. If I see another one, I will smack my head against the wall. Even _I_ didn't get a quarter of the amount of presents on my actual birthday."

Not that she would want to. She was far too practical to want to receive such an exorbitant amount of gifts. If she were to receive all of this, the majority of them would head straight to the trash.

"That is because unbirthdays are more fun than real ones. Just enjoy yourself, milady. You seem more irritable than usual. Are there any problems?"

Allysia stiffened, but feigned ignorance. "Nothing's wrong... Like you would really care..."

She then stormed out the door and out into the halls before Blood could interrogate her further.

It was such a horrible lie. It was painfully obvious something was the matter. The abundance of presents didn't bother her and surprisingly enough Blood wasn't the source of her antagonism. All she could blame was herself and her own carelessness.

'_I can't believe my locket is gone!_'

Her mind fumed at the thought, cursing herself for her stupidity. Where in the world could she have put it? After she struggled to repair her broken chain, albeit unsuccessfully, she thought she placed it on the table, resolving to try again in the morning.

When she woke up, it had completely disappeared. No one could just go into her room and take it. She always locked the door before she slept. It must have fallen somewhere, and she didn't know about it. Desperate to find it, she overturned furniture, nearly ripping the room apart just to locate that piece of jewelry.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find it. As far as she knew, it was gone.

Her heart twisted at the thought. The chain itself was expendable and the only reason why she kept it because she was too stubborn and cheap to use her money to buy a new one. But the locket… that locket was more precious to her than her very life.

No matter how terrible that thought it, she wasn't planning on complaining to Blood about it. No, it wasn't worth wasting a single breath. He couldn't do much to help her anyway.

Allysia resolved to try her search in the room again, planning on asking the servants if they had seen it.

Meanwhile, after she left, Blood chuckled at her behavior. Even he wasn't blind to her irritation... and of what. In those rare aspects, he could easily read her like a book.

Would it honestly kill her to tell him what was bothering her? Considering her apparent distaste for him, he supposed it would.

'_What a prideful woman..._'

"Hey, Boss." The Mafioso leader turned his attention to his right-hand man as he entered Blood's office.

A dark brow arched in question. "Are preparations complete?"

"Yep, everything's all set!" Elliot informed him cheerfully.

"And what about _it_?"

"A maid is sending it over as we speak!"

Blood grinned. "Excellent... Now, let's get the festivities started... shall we?"

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Allysia never felt so tired. She released a loud sigh as she collapsed herself on a chair in the Hatter halls, sinking even deeper into her depression.

She tried everything she could possibly think of and wasted most of the day looking for it. She combed her room four times and even tried scouring every conceivable inch of the Hatter's mansion to look for it. Still, she had no luck. It was no where to be found.

'_Just where could it have gone?_' The item was very precious to her, the only link she still had to her life in her world. If she lost that, she lost her cousin and her mother forever.

Before the foreigner could curl up in complete despair, two servants appeared by her side.

"Miss Allysia, are you alright?" a butler asked in concern, looking down at her seated form.

She quickly composed herself and put on a strong front. "Of course! Why, is there something you both need?"

The maid beside him said, "You are needed in the dining room. It's very important!"

"Please come with us, Miss Allysia."

Looking to find a distraction, she complied and followed the two Hatter servants. Her gaze settled on the maid. For some strange reason, the woman looked oddly familiar to her. She could not put her finger on how though...

"Hey, have I seen you before?"

The two servants halted and looked at the foreigner. By the attention Allysia was giving the maid, they assumed the question was directed was for her.

"Er, I don't quite understand what you mean. If we have seen each other in the mansion, then yes, we have."

"No, that's not what I meant. I swore I have seen you outside of the mansion..." Suddenly, something clicked in her mind. "Oh! Now I remember! Weren't you one of the maids that made me dress up when I worked for Heart Castle?"

She exhaled sharply and quickly refuted, "No! I'm not! Er, Miss, you must have me mistaken for another. Y... You know it is very easy to do so. We servants are all faceless, and it's easy to see that we all look alike."

The foreigner shook her head. "No, it's nothing like that. Believe it or not, there are small things that set you apart that... makes me know it's you. I... I just know. I can't explain it."

The maid didn't to offer a response, even holding her breath as Allysia scrutinized her. She was so sure of it. She definitely saw this girl before in Heart Castle. Her hair was a tint darker than the other girls in Hatter territory – or perhaps a tint lighter than the norm in Heart.

If her eyes were right, why would she work two jobs? It seemed unlikely that Blood or Vivaldi would send someone to spy on the other territories. It would be inconvenient, considering the decrease of employees and their increase in their monetary deficit...

Before she could ponder it any further, the butler diffused the tension with a light-hearted laugh.

"Ah, it's been such awhile since someone has been able to tell us all apart... It's refreshing, not to mention nostalgic." He placed his hands on both girls' shoulders, breaking Allysia of her musings. "Miss Allysia, I assure you that this maid has been working faithfully for the Hatter for quite some time now. It is likely you are mistaken in this case."

"My friend is right! My loyalty belongs to my master, and I only work for him." She abruptly turned around and began walking. "Let's keep moving please. Out superior tends to get upset if we keep him waiting."

Allysia opened her mouth, but clamped it shut, following the two servants forward.

'_But I'm so sure it's her..._' By the maid's abruptness and eagerness to change subjects, it wouldn't be wrong to guess that she may be right. She was never one to mistake a face, even one devoid of any physical attributes. '_Then there was the fact she said master... a very vague response._'

Just who was her master? Was she referring to Blood? Or some other person she didn't even think of?

"Here we are. Please step right in."

She did as they said and took a tentative step into the darkness. It was uncomfortable and her senses were on high alert. "H… Hello? Is anyone here?"

"Ah, milady. So glad you can make it."

The lights snapped on. Allysia gasped. The table was completely set, bedecked with colorful deserts and decorations. She wasn't sure what to make of all this.

The twins jumped out of their seats and shouted, "Surprise! Happy unbirthday, onee-chan!"

"W… wait… what? This is… for me?" she asked in surprise.

Elliot nodded his head. "Yep! Since you have been staying here for awhile, we decided to throw you a little something special!"

"Surprised?" The twins interjected.

Allysia nodded her head and swallowed. "So… so all those supplies I bought with you guys… that was for today?" The four role holders nodded their heads. "Oh, you didn't need to do this… This is too much…"

"Nonsense. You are my guest. It is only proper as a host to make you feel welcome," Blood said, taking a nonchalant sip of his tea.

"He's the one that suggested the idea of a party," Elliot whispered to her, earning a brief glare from the raven Hatter.

Allysia merely stared at the four faces, finding herself sincerely touched. She smiled and made her way to an open seat. "Aw… thanks, guys."

"Open our present first! Open our present first, onee-chan!" The twins exclaimed excitedly.

Elliot proudly announced, "Too late for that! Allysia saw _my_ present first."

"What? What did you get her?" they asked with a scowl.

"I didn't _get_ her anything. I made her something!"

"Wait, this is my present? You cooked all this food?" she asked, staring at each and every pastry in surprise.

"Well some of them… I mostly made the ones that are made out of carrots! They're all for you!"

"A… All of them?"

"Yep! Look, I made carrot cookies, carrot cupcakes, carrot cake… everything and anything carrot-related!"

"O… oh. How nice. Thank you, Elliot." From the corners of her eyes, she noticed Blood tense ever so slightly, keeping his gaze down on his tea. Apparently someone wasn't so happy to be surrounded by so many carroty confections. She smirked and took mental note of that.

"That's a stupid present. Our turn! Our turn!" The twins trotted to her side, pushing past the March Hare and handing her a box. "Open our present now! We'll know you'll be surprised!"

Allysia graciously took their gift and slowly opened it. Her mouth fell open. All she could do was stare at the box's contents. "You guys got me a gun?"

Dee pulled the firearm out of the box, his smile widening. "It's actually a .49 caliber semi-automatic pistol! We customized it ourselves! Bullets are inside the box too!"

"And we didn't _just_ get you a gun! We also got you a bunch of knives too! Look!" Dum said.

Allysia did as he said and peeked inside, shivers racing down her spine when she saw those glistening blades hidden underneath red and blue sheathes. Of all things those kids could get her, they get her weapons?

After Dee placed the gun back in the box, she slammed it shut and stared at the cheerful twins. "Well, thanks for such a… practical present."

A present she had zero intentions of using whatsoever.

"Now it is time for milady to open my present."

She blinked, shocked to see a large box appear in front of her. She glanced over to Elliot and the twins, who only stared in equal curiosity. Her gaze returned to the box. Just what in the world could Blood have in there?

"There is nothing to be afraid of, milady. Please, open it."

Pushing aside her apprehensions, she untied the ribbon and threw open the box's lid. Allysia looked down and stared at the box's contents.

"…It's another box."

She glanced over to Blood, who only encouraged her to keep opening it. Allysia continued forward and kept opening the box. Her frustration slowly escalated when each box only revealed a smaller box, growing smaller and smaller still.

Once she reached one of the smallest boxes, her patience had run thin. She refused to open another one. "Oh my god! This is ridiculous!"

"What's wrong, milady? Aren't you going to open your present?"

She glared at Blood, believing he was mocking her. She didn't dare touch it. If she opened the box and saw yet another box inside, she would smash it right to the ground and throw the rest right at the Hatter's presumptuous face.

Realizing her irritation and her growing homicidal intention, the twins pulled her arms and dragged her away from the table. "Come on, onee-chan! Let's show you how to use your present!"

"We should teach you how to shoot first! Won't that be fun?"

Her anger evaporated as fear took its place. "What?"

There grips on her arms felt like cold shackles. There was no time to escape.

Just as the two guided Allysia out the door, Elliot jumped to his feet and bolted after them. "Hey you two! Bring her back here! You'll only hurt her!"

Soon the room was completely empty. Blood Dupre sat calmly in his seat and drank his tea. He looked over to the last box, seeing it sit innocently on the table. He grinned and suppressed his laughter.

No one understood his dear sense of humor... Even when he pulled this ploy on Alice long ago, her frustrations were less dramatic than hers. He held vague hopes that Allysia would understand his humor a bit more. Considering her nearly corporeal murderous intent, it seemed he was wrong.

He sighed and took the box into his hands.

If only Allysia held out for one more moment, she would see that this was the last box in the set. If she only a minute of patience, she would have seen this last box held out his present for her, a present he was completely certain she would love.

Oh well. Live and learn. It was amusing while it lasted...

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

All in all, today was a fairly good day. The unbirthday party was rather enjoyable, and the food was delicious. Her presents were... unique at best.

She was relieved when Elliot ended up eating most of the carrot dishes. Though she had no problem with carrots or carrot-related dishes, there was no way she would be able to eat so much of it. Her stomach twisted at the thought.

The twin's present just made her nervous. She reopened the box and peered inside. Their gift was only typical of their violent, blood-happy personalities, but didn't stop her from being completely surprised. She carefully sifted through the contents - an empty gun, ammunition, several kinds of knives and daggers.

One item caught her attention.

"A Swiss Army knife?" She pulled the object out of the container. It was a plain red and blue, with no other elaborate decorum. She examined each of its functions, most of them being knives, but it held some more practical functions such as scissors and a corkscrew. Seeing this object reminded her of the one her father had at home and taught her to use. She smiled at the thought, carefully placing it in the pockets of her dress and shoving the rest under her bed.

Their intentions for the party were genuine, and she appreciated it immensely. There was one thing that could make the day better – finding her lost locket. She sighed dismally at the thought.

'_Just where did I put it…_'

There was a knock on the door. "Milady?"

"What do you want, Blood?" she asked, keeping her distance away from man.

He walked passed the door's threshold and entered into her room. "I simply wanted to give you your present. You never finished opening it."

"To hell I did! What type of present was that?"

His lips quirked up. He offered the small box to her. "I promise that this is the last one. Now, please open it. I'm sure that you'll like it."

Her eyes narrowed, dubious and unconvinced. Still, she walked towards him and plucked the present from his hand. She warily turned the box multiple ways, examining the pastel blue wrapping and single white ribbon.

"Just so you know, if there's only another box in here, I will smash it in your face. You understand that, right?"

"Of course. Now please open it."

Allysia looked over the box once more and slowly slipped off the ribbon, carelessly tossing open the lid.

What she saw inside caught her completely off guard. She blinked once. Twice. A third time for good measure. She just could not believe what she was seeing. Sitting inside the box was her locket.

Her lips fell open, unable to form a coherent word. She tentatively lifted the locket out, staring at a stunning, silver chain. Seeing it all polished and new, sparkling just as it was when her mother gave it to her when she was younger, filled her heart with a sense of relief and euphoria. Then she remembered who gave it back to her.

She nursed her elated expression into a scowl. "Just how did you get your hands on my locket? You couldn't have gone into my room to get it. The door was locked."

"Why, yes it was. You are much more cautious than Alice was so it was quite a surprise," he admitted. "But, that was only a minor setback. I do have a master key to all these rooms after all."

Allysia mentally cursed. '_Now I don't feel safe anymore..._'

"Knowing how precious this was to you, I knew you would waste half the day looking for it while I waited for the chain and locket to arrive and the party to be set up. As an extra measure, I had the servants help create a ruse to distract you."

"So wait! So bringing all those presents into your office..."

"Was the distraction. Usually I'd just have those presents thrown away or let my subordinates do what they want with them. I would never let that ridiculous amount of garbage pile in my office. It's very distracting." He tilted his head slightly and smirked, adding, "I also thought you'd like some exercise. You never struck me as the athletic type."

Her eyes narrowed. "…You're lucky you actually got me a decent present or else I'd slap you."

His emerald eyes gleamed. "So, you like your present then? The old chain was horribly flimsy, and it was a disgrace for a woman of your stature."

"Yeah, considering it was mine to begin with… but the new chain is very nice."

Allysia looked down at the box uncomfortably. In fact, it was very thoughtful of the Mad Hatter to actually go out of his way to get her something like it, despite her protests otherwise. The thought of a considerate Mad Hatter contradicted with her perception of a completely selfish, conceited Mafioso. It was an unsettling realization to say the least.

He lifted the necklace out of the box and placed it around the neck. Her heart settled in relief when she felt the familiar weight of the locket. She looked down at it, feeling the cool silver in between in fingertips.

"I don't mean to pry, but may I see what's inside?"

Allysia considered his request for a moment and eventually sighed in consent.

"I guess I do owe you a favor for doing this for me…" She opened the locket. Blood leaned in to examine the tiny pictures. "On the left is a picture of me and my cousin, Eclaire."

His released a breath of amusement. "Ah… so this Eclaire isn't a pastry after all… the twins would be very disappointed to hear that." Allysia rolled her eyes. He then turned his attention to the other half of the locket. His expression fell completely blank. "Who's this? Your mother?"

She glanced down and nodded her head. "Yep! She's the one who wrote that wonderland book I told you about earlier."

"I see… so what is she like?" he inquired.

"Well, other than an author, she's also an avid reader. Overall, she's the fairest, most compassionate person you can ever meet," she replied, swelling in pride at the thought. "I actually would put a picture of both my parents, but my father simply hates them! He does everything he can to avoid the camera!"

At the mention of her father, Blood's countenance hardened ever so slightly, but quickly relaxed. "So how is your father? Is he treated both of you alright?"

"Of course. He's a great man, and he does everything he can to make sure both of our lives are comfortable. He genuinely loves us, and I could not ask for a better."

Despite her uncertainty as to why Blood asked her such a peculiar question, she smiled at the thought. Despite everything – pushing her to be perfect, working extremely late hours without a single break – she still loved him. He always meant well, even if she didn't always agree with his intentions.

He studied Allysia's content face for a brief moment before returning to the pictures in her locket. He smiled softly and closed it.

"That's good. I'm glad to hear you sound so happy." Blood stepped back and began to make his way out the door. "Well, it's late. I will let you get some sleep, milady."

"Wait, Blood!" He paused for a moment, watching as she trotted to his side. "Well if this is my unbirthday, I can have _anything_ I want, right?"

"Within reason. What is it?" he inquired. Her blue eyes sparkled at the notion, staring longingly at his top hat. His eyes narrowed. "No. Lending you my hat for even a moment is completely unreasonable."

She groaned in disappointment and pouted. "Fine! But there's just one other thing I want to say to you!"

"Yes? What would that be, may I ask?" She opened her mouth then quickly clamped it shut. Her expression fell completely blank and unreadable. She dropped her gaze for a moment, shuffling uncomfortably in her place.

A moment passed. Two.

The Hatter arched his brow in question. "Milady, is there something that you would-"

His words were clipped from his mouth when she suddenly hugged him. Blood tensed in his place, unable to move a muscle.

Allysia then stepped back and separated herself, blushing madly. "I… I just wanted to say… thank you. It was nice of you to buy me a new chain. Happy unbirthday, Blood."

He blinked in surprise, incredulous he heard such a thing from her lips, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment. His muscles relaxed as he smiled at her, only causing the red in her cheeks to deepen.

"You surely can do better than that. That is no proper way to thank a person."

Her eyes widened in shock then narrowed. She opened her mouth to argue, but could only released a gasp when Blood pulled her into him. She felt very conscious of their proximity, his nose nearly touching hers.

Recollecting her fallen poise, she found it within her to remain firm, challenging, "Oh yeah? Then what is?

He grinned wolfishly at her. "This."

He closed off the remaining distance between them. Her eyes widened; her whole body tensed. All she could think about was Blood's lips as he pecked her gently at the corner of her mouth.

He then released her from his grasp, allowing her stumble back, momentarily dazed. "And that is simply one befitting way to thank a man."

He took a step back from her and leaned casually against the doorway, watching her expression. Allysia stood there for a few long moments, processing what had just occurred. Her reaction was predictable at best.

Her eyes darkened into an angry storm. She snapped, "You perverted bastard! That is a horrible way! Forget me being nice to you! To think I thought you did something nice because you meant it! Not that you wanted something in return!"

"What's wrong with being both?"

Her expression fell into quiet rage. She pointed to the door. "Get out of my room. Now. Before I punch you senseless."

"As you wish… Happy unbirthday, Allysia." His cocky smile never left his face as he bid adieu, quickly ducking out the doorway.

Allysia simply slammed the door shut, enraged and embarrassed. She angrily rubbed the corner of her mouth clean, feeling as if such contact with such a self-centered man was fatal.

'_I should have known… only Blood could ruin such a decent day._' Annoyed, she forced herself to get ready for bed and go to sleep.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

The next day, she walked through the hallways in faint surprise. Everywhere she looked, the servants were furiously cleaning every inch of the mansion until it was spotless.

She approached one butler and asked him, "What's going on here?"

"We were given word that there is an important business meeting today with our boss, and we need to get this place clean before they arrive," he answered, wiping down a table.

"Really? Who's coming?"

"From what I hear, in their territory leader's stead, Lord Sayer is coming." Her eyes widened at the thought, unsure if she should feel nervous or excited at the prospect of seeing the Diamond Knight. "…and I believe Lady Chalice is also coming."

Then her expression fell into despair.

"The meeting shouldn't take too long. If you want to see the Diamonds, the meeting today is in Blood's office."

"Really? …Then I shall be making sure I stay clear from there. Thank you, but I'll be busy hiding." She turned on her heels and stormed away.

No matter how much she wanted to see Sayer, there was no way she wanted to see Chalice. Not after she found out that Chalice disliked her with a passion. She planned on avoiding her at all costs if she could.

'_Maybe I should get out of the territory for a little while… at least until Chalice leaves._'

Deliberating that as the safest course of action, Allysia sneaked out of the mansion and headed outside. Just where should she go until the meantime? It would be hard moving about considering the Diamonds could be coming here at any moment. She had to be very careful not to get caught…

"Hi there, Ally!"

Allysia stifled a scream at the sound of the voice, shocked blue meeting a pair of cheerful crimson. "Ace, what are you doing here?"

"Oh… this isn't the Tower?" He examined his surroundings and laughed. "Hahaha! Ah, Julius is going to be mad to see I'm late again!"

"Well, maybe you should get out of here. If you haven't noticed I'm very busy right now," she said to him.

"Oh, busy doing what?"

"Trying to run away and hide! Sayer and Chalice are coming, and I don't particularly want to see them."

Particularly Chalice, but Ace didn't need to know that.

His eyes lit up. "Oh? The Blood Diamonds are coming here on business?" Allysia nodded his head. Ace appeared thoughtful for a moment before he snapped his fingers. "Oh, why not I help you, Ally!"

"Uh, I don't think that's particularly – **AH!**"

She wasn't given the opportunity to protest. Ace quickly swung her over his shoulders and took off. "Don't worry, Ally! I know this great hiding spot! No one will be able to find you."

Allysia sighed in defeat and mumbled, "Yeah… that's what I'm afraid of…"

* * *

A/N Notes: Happy unbirthday indeed, Allysia. ;p  
So yeah. As his present, Blood basically stole Ally's necklace, polished it up, and spent his money on a new chain for her. How nice... sorta.

As a side note, I promise to show a bit more of my other OCs next chapter. They beg to be written. ^^

Anyways, thanks for reading~


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

**Swordfights and Card Games**

It felt like they had been walking for hours. The scenery remained monotonously the same – the endless flow of water, the constant surrounding of verdant foliage. Everything else was silent, save for the sound of rushing, river water.

Allysia impatiently tapped her fingers on her chin as Ace continued to carry her through the forest. She glanced over to the knight and asked, "Hey, did you _really_ get lost and happen to wander into Hatter territory? It seemed way too much of a coincidence to me."

"Of course I did! I do it all the time! I actually was going to see Julius about my duties instead of carrying out Vivaldi's orders, and somehow ended up there," he replied.

She arched a brow in question. "Really? What were you supposed to be doing?"

"Vivaldi wanted me to retrieve you and bring you to our territory! She complained you were around the Hatters for too long, and wanted to see you." Ace then released a hardy laugh. "Forget that! I can't find my way there from here!"

"Or find this infamous hiding spot. Why are you even bothering helping me?"

"I got a little bored when I got lost! Hanging out with you helps cure that!" She rolled her eyes, partially dubious. "Hmm... I swore it was around here somewhere! Where could it be..."

"If you let me down, I'll help you find it. Why are you carrying me in the first place?"

"It's just easier this way! You seem a little bit on the weaker side, and since we had to do walk quite distance, I decided to carry you!"

"I'm not weak! Let me down, and I'll show you!"

Ace only laughed, tightening his hold on her waist as she violently thrashed her limbs. Seeing escape was impossible, she calmed herself and glared at him.

Optimistically speaking, hanging around Ace wasn't too bad. Despite his moments, all he seemed be a carefree, wandering fool, always getting horribly lost no matter what.

'_Why's that?_' He didn't seem like a _complete_ idiot. Despite his absentmindedness, he must have some reason to keep wandering, taking days upon days to reach his destination. What was he looking for?

_I am nothing more than the Knight of Hearts in this country. I'm forced to protect the pointless rules of this society…_

Suddenly, she came to a conclusion. What Ace was trying to look for, searching aimlessly in this rule-ridden labyrinth... was a way out.

She frowned at the thought, a part of her pitying the reluctant knight, even if another part of her thought it unsafe to do so. Nightmare had told her he was dangerous. Even in the few times she got to know him, she wasn't sure if she completely understood what Nightmare meant by that…

"Uh-oh... Oops! Hang on tight!"

She snapped her head towards him. "Huh, what do you – **AH!**"

…but at that moment, she had a vague feeling she was beginning to understand it now.

Allysia screamed as they hurtled down the cliff, drowned out by the thundering roar of the waterfall. She shut her eyes as she clung to him for dear life. Her stomach twisted into tight knots. The fall seemed to take forever.

Finally, they crashed down into the water below. Ace quickly pulled her back to the surface. She breathed in deeply, coughing out the water that entered her lungs.

The man beside her could only laugh. "Wow! Wasn't that fun?" She could only respond with a glare, her throat still raw from the nearly fatal experience. "But really, Ally! You were holding onto me so tightly that I thought you were trying to choke me! I know you can't get close enough to me, but that was going a bit overboard."

Ace recoiled when she smacked on the head. She yelled, "I was not doing it for that reason! We fell off a cliff. We could have _died_."

Gently rubbing his head, he smiled and chose to look at the bright side of things. "Ah, but the good news is that we didn't, now did we? "

Allysia could only gape at him. She separated herself, disgusted by his overwhelming optimism, and swam to shore. She shakily crawled out of the freezing waters, nearly embracing the ground beneath her. "Thank god! Solid land!"

Ace sloshed onto shore right behind her. "Haha! Yeah, I always seem to wander in these kinds of dangerous situations... Oh well! That's part of the fun of journeying anyway!"

The foreigner glanced over to him, not amused. "So you do this often? Cliff diving?"

"Nah, not really! Just happens once or twice that's all! I get into much more dangerous situations than that!"

"Really… say you never fell on your head, have you?" Ace only laughed it off. She rolled her eyes, wringing the water out of her damp hair. "I guess getting into dangerous situations comes with always wandering without knowing where you're going. If that's the case, then please don't bother bringing me along."

"Haha, but it's more fun when you're around! After all, weren't you the one who said we're kindred spirits?"

From the corner of her eye, she noticed Ace settle himself beside her. She decided to ignore him and concentrated her attention of drying herself off. "I did, and I meant it in only one respect. Everything else you said, I don't agree with."

"Oh yeah?" Allysia kept her composure as she noticed Ace draw even closer to her. "With what?"

She took deep, calming breath. Ace was just trying to get a reaction, and there was no way she was going to give him such a pleasure.

She calmly replied, "When you said all your lives are worthless, replaceable. You guys are anything, but replaceable to me. If anyone one of you were gone, you'd be completely different and I'd never see you again."

His crimson eyes widened a moment, looking at her strangely before breaking out into laughter. "Hahaha! Where have I heard that before? Are all foreigners as naive as you? Things here are so much different from your world! Don't tell me you're against violence as well?"

Ace sidled even closer to her, but Allysia was too irritated to take any notice. His face was right before hers, his eyes gleaming with amusement.

Affronted, she huffed, "Of course I am! The kind of violence done in this country is wrong. That's what my mother taught me, and I stand by it!"

"Hahaha! I guess your mother is naive too! People like you won't survive for very long in this country."

"I believe I am surviving just fine. And don't you dare insult my mother! You never met her, idiot!" Her lips twisted into a pout when Ace laughed at her once again.

Her body stiffened when he drew even closer. One of his hands curled around a strand of her hair while his face leaned into her ear.

Her face flushed, and she jerked away. "Just what are you doing?"

He smiled innocently and stated, "You know, you look pretty attractive when you're upset like that!"

"That still doesn't answer why you're doing annoying things like that," she deadpanned, scooting away when he tried moving closer to her once again. "J… just stop it!"

"Why? I thought we were kindred spirits! Don't they do stuff like this?"

His arm settled itself around her shoulder, pulling her in closer to him. She sat there completely paralyzed, uneasily watching his eyes flash with an emotion that she failed to recognize.

She argued firmly, "No, they don't! Why are you even doing this? I thought you didn't "love" me like all the other people do?"

"Ah, I don't! I decided that I'm interested in you! There's a big difference between the two!"

"Uh-huh… Whatever." Allysia managed to slip out of his grasp and rise to her feet. Her hands clasped her arms as she felt a shiver race through her body. "Gosh, because of you, I'm soaking wet now. I'm freezing!"

"Aw, I'm sorry! Hey! Why not you take your wet clothes off then? I'll warm you up!" he offered, opening his arms wide.

Allysia took a step back away. "No way. How about I get some firewood while you wait right here."

Ace nodded his head in consent. Allysia then turned on her wet heels and walked into the forest.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Even after wasting some time, she still found herself fuming. How annoying… Who would ever thought such a decent seeming man could be such an irritating pervert? What was the matter with her thinking that he was actually normal?

'_He has too many issues to be even considered a normal._'

Thinking about it now, she would have thought he was a bit off in the head. Talking about depressing topics as one's worthlessness is no laughing matter. Yet Ace can smile and laugh it off like it was nothing, like it was something he had long already accepted…

She mentally smacked herself for such thoughts, finding herself feeling even more sympathy for him. Figuring the kind of man he was, she doubted he wanted her pity or even cared that she felt sorry for him in the first place.

_Clink!_

Allysia froze in her place when she suddenly heard the sounds of clashing metal. Her heart pounded against her chest, unsure if her anxiety was directed towards Ace or for the person he was fighting (she assumed the latter).

Clutching the wood against her chest, Allysia dashed forward. The sound of the fight only grew louder and louder until she saw them. Ace was only a haze of red as she exchanged deft blows with another blur of blue. Sayer.

She dropped the pile onto the floor, eyes widening in a mix of unease and amazement. It was an incredible sight to behold – two of the best warriors from their respective territories fighting like this. Their strikes were precise, their dodges and parries nimble and elegant. She had only seen such skill choreographed in movies.

Ace's single sword made a wide, arcing motion downwards. Sayer's duel blades crossed together and defended himself from the assault. Both men stood their grounds, not moving a single inch.

"So, what's the Blue Knight doing here? I heard you guys were supposed to be on business with the Hatters today!" Ace asked casually. Sayer pushed Ace away, creating distance between the two.

"It was a short negotiation meeting, interrupted when we heard the Hatter servants distraught that a trespasser stole the foreigner away. I was put on the search party to look for her," the Diamond Knight replied stoically, settling himself in defensive stance. His eyes narrowed into an icy sneer. "Now, I can't help, but wonder who that person could be…"

Ace released a light-hearted laugh and lunged forward. Sayer deflected his assault and dodged a follow-up strike towards his head.

"Haha! What's so bad about me hanging around her? I have no intentions of hurting her… no matter how interesting killing her may be."

Allysia felt a shudder race through her cold spine. The Heart Knight's expression remained disturbingly cheerful, even more so as he agilely swiped at Sayer's stomach.

The Blue Knight dodged and scoffed, his expression remaining alert yet serious. "Are you sure you're in a position to guarantee that, _knight_? I do know about your various attempts to escape your role. You are a danger to her."

Ace stared at him for a brief moment before bursting out into laughter. Sayer gritted his teeth, his hands tightening around the hilts of his blades.

"Well, it's obvious I'm not much of a knight. This chivalrous kind of role doesn't suit me, and that's why I took these other jobs! But I wouldn't worry too much. He hasn't approached me about her nor do I want to speak to him! You should actually know better than I do if he has any plans, huh blue boy?" Sayer responded with a glare, refusing to dignify him with a response. "Hahaha! I am honestly interested in her! She makes stuff fun again! If we want to talk about who's dangerous to her, it'd probably be _you_."

Sayer flinched back defensively, his lips tightening into a thin line. "Just shut up." He coolly dashed forward, bombarding him with unrelenting sword assaults. All attacks were properly dodged and parried. "Working these meaningless jobs and for what? To escape your role and break the constraints that bind you to these rules? _How pathetic._"

Ace's eyes flashed and he retaliated, promptly kicking Sayer in the stomach. Sayer exhaled deeply but quickly recovered, jumping back when Ace swiped his sword at him.

"Oh? You want to talk to me about pathetic, huh? Haha! Well, you should know about that too! Mr. Sayer is just as stuck as I am! In fact, maybe you're even _more_ pathetic than I am." Ace chuckled and leapt back, sidestepping Sayer's assault. "Hahaha! I know I hate my role and I'd do anything to get out, but I would never bother going through such lengths as to even _bend rules_! I dealt with it… haha, but big bad Sayer didn't even bother _trying_."

The Blue Knight's eyes darkened into a black storm, glaring daggers into Ace's person.

"Haha! No matter how much you grew to better suit your role, you're still an ignorant brat… No amount of redemption, self-loathing, and brooding can change that!"

Then Allysia saw something that she never thought could happen. The cool-headed Sayer had finally snapped.

"**Just shut up!**"

The Diamond knight dashed forward, his two blades poised and ready to strike. Ace followed suit with his own sword. At the momentum those two were going, the attack would possibly turn out to be a harsh, fatal blow.

Allysia's body moved without her volition. Before she knew it, she stood between the two men.

"STOP!"

She dared not move. A slight pain registered at the side of her neck and a blur of silver sat precariously by her throat. She felt the wind rush past her the back of hair while the other diverted right in front of her eyes.

Both men blinked, staring at the brunette foreigner in surprise.

The Heart Knight chuckled. "Haha, Ally, how'd you get here so fast? Want to join us?"

Unlike Ace, the Diamond Knight was not amused. He chided her, "Allysia, why did you get in between us? If we didn't act fast enough, you could have died!"

"Well, at least it stopped you both from fighting!" she shouted, glaring at both men. "I don't know what's going on or how this all started, but I want you both to just knock it off. You're both acting like idiots. If you both want to chop each other to bits, you have to get through me."

The three dared not move a muscle. Allysia glanced over to the two role holders, her expression firm and unyielding. With a loud grunt, the three blades receded and returned to their respective sheaths. She relaxed, releasing a breath she did not know she was even holding.

Sayer rubbed the bridge of his nose and took long, even breaths. "Alright then. Allysia, I will be escorting you back to the Hatter Mansion after I collect myself. You really need to be away from that… _behemoth_ of a knight. If you interfere, Ace…"

Ace held up in arms defense and laughed. "Haha, I get it, Sayer. I had lots of fun, and I'm good. Though I am disappointed Ally has to leave so soon… I understand."

Sayer grunted in disgust and turned around, disappearing off into the forest. Allysia rubbed her temples, mentally relieved that the disaster was avoided.

"Ah, Ally, I didn't know that you wanted to join in! I think I have a knife in my coat… I could have given it to you if you asked!" he said blithely.

"I want no such thing!"

Ace cringed when Allysia slapped him on the head.

"Ow… even though you say you're a nonviolent person, you sure like hurting others. I never even expected you step in between us!"

"I don't believe in violence, but I will freely smack idiots who do harm others!" she said prudishly. Ace rubbed the back of his head, jokingly muttering underneath his breath about hypocrisy. She ignored him and asked, "Now explain what that nonsense was about."

He replied, "It wasn't nonsense! It served a very practical purpose! I was just getting some training in!"

Allysia was surprised by the statement. She blinked and released an unintelligible, "Eh?"

"Yep! There's not many I can train with full out here. Sayer and Gray are the only ones whom I can really practice with. Probably Chalice too, but she's nowhere near as fun as her brother. Sayer's even more reluctant than Gray to train with me so I have to give him a bit incentive to fight with me!"

"So wait… all that talk was just to get him mad enough to fight you?"

Ace nodded his head, clearly unashamed by his actions. "Yep!"

The brunette foreigner simply stared at him, her expression bordering over disbelief. She deadpanned, "…You really _are_ an idiot. So was all that even true or just trash talk?"

"Oh, I don't lie!" he said, "Why should I?"

His words suddenly took her aback. She dropped her gaze and mulled over his words.

'_If everything Ace said about Sayer was true… then what did he mean?_' Every person has their own individual issues. Sayer was obviously no exception. '_Self-loathing? Pathetic? Why would Ace say such things…_'

Suddenly she became acutely aware of the brown-haired man's proximity to her, his gloved fingers brushing against the side of her neck.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked softly.

Her heart pumped blood into her face, and she pulled away. "What do you think _you're_ doing?"

"Just reminding you that I'm still here! I don't like being ignored. Plus, I was just checking out that cut on your neck." Allysia jumped up in alarm, blue eyes widening fearfully. She allowed him to draw closer, bringing his head closer to her neck to examine her wound. "I wouldn't worry about it too much. It's just a tiny cut. Ally's lucky I managed to maneuver my sword in time or else she'd have a huge hole in her throat!"

"Well, I'm sorry that I doubted screaming would make you guys stop. I figured a physical obstacle would be much more effective."

He argued, "But you could have done something a bit smarter! If you had a weapon, you wouldn't have to do that!" His ruby eyes sparkled as he came up with an idea. "Ooh! How 'bout I teach ya? Then you would know how to better care for yourself and not get nasty cuts."

"There's no way in hell am I going to use weapon. And... Ace what are you doing now?"

Allysia yelped when she felt him lean forward, gently lapping his tongue against her wound. She instinctively tried moving away, but his arms kept her firmly in place.

"I'm trying to treat your wound! Wouldn't want it getting it infected, you know!" he replied innocently, giving her neck another lick.

A shiver raced down her spine. "So to treat a small cut you have to _lick_ it?"

"Yeah! Then do this to make it all better."

Allysia's eyes widened, her whole body tensing when she felt him place a feathery kiss on her neck. Her face exploded into a bright crimson, and goosebumps appeared all across her skin. Her composure momentarily shattered as he continued to lick and kiss her wound, pulling her even closer into him. Her mind was thrown into a frazzled, incoherent mess, unable to think of a lucid thought.

She fought back her blush and said as firmly as she could, "Ace, stop it. Let me go. I'm getting wet."

He paused from his ministrations and looked over her in surprise. "Already? Wow, you're really sensitive! I didn't even do anything yet!"

Her face burned, and she snapped, "Not like that, pervert! I meant your clothes! You're still soaked! Let me go."

"Haha, oh, you don't have to pretend. It's okay to admit you're attracted to me, Ally!"

Her countenance contorted into a scowl. "All I'll admit is that I want to _repel_ you now. Let me go!"

The foreigner found it within herself to fight against Ace's grasp on her, struggling to break free. The red knight laughed at her feeble attempts, keeping his tight hold on her squirming person. Both figures were much to engrossed on their current situation that they failed to see a certain role holder return before them.

"Ahem, Allysia?" Both figures glanced over to the source of the voice. Sayer had regained his composure, the impassivity in his features. His gaze remained on the ground, standing in a way that she thought would be awkward. "I'm sorry if I'm, er, interrupting anything, but I suggest we get going."

The two quickly separated from each other. Allysia eagerly ran for the Diamond Knight's side and said, "I completely agree! Bye, Ace!"

Ace smiled at them and waved. "Haha, okay! Bye, Ally and Sayer! See ya again soon!"

The two then began to walk away. Sayer glanced over to the flushed foreigner as she consciously straightened out her attire, muttering incoherently under her breath. Her blue eyes met his curious orbs. A brow quirked up in question.

"You don't want to know."

Sayer shrugged his shoulders in acceptance, and the two continued silently towards Hatter territory.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

Once the two returned to the mansion's door, Allysia was met with the Hatter role holders and bombarded with dozens of questions concerning her health and wellbeing.

She tiredly replied, "Yes, I'm fine. I just went out for a long walk."

The twins drew closer to her and studied her clothes. "Why are you all wet?"

Her brow twitched at the memory. She cryptically replied, "You don't want to know."

She hoped that was the last of their questions, that she could go to her room and just rest.

By the curious look in the twin's eyes, she realized she was far from done. They gasped. "Onee-chan, what's on your neck?"

"Is that a love bite or something?"

"What did that Heart Knight do to our mommy?"

She clamped her hand over her neck, her cheeks reddening in embarrassment when she noticed their faces look at her with equal curiosity.

"It's nothing like that! I swear!" Still, the Hatters seem unconvinced. She glanced over to Sayer for assistance, her blue eyes screaming of desperation.

Sayer sighed. "I assure you it's nothing of that sort. She got caught in a minor scuffle and received a minor injury. That is all."

Blood scrutinized the Diamond Knight's stolid expression for a moment before he accepted his explanation. "I see. Milady, that is what happens when you wander away from us… you get hurt."

Oh the irony. Allysia winced and barked back, "It's not my fault that I basically got kidnapped!"

Before Blood could further chastise her for such careless behavior, the sound of a yawn caught their attentions. Allysia watched as the other Diamond Knight walked through the mansion, languidly looking over to the Hatter servant by her side.

"Maid, why did you wake me from my nap? I thought I told you not to disturb me until onii-chan came back," Chalice said blandly, yawning loudly into her palm once more.

The maid – the one Allysia recognized as the one who escorted the other day – stood demurely behind her, her arms clasped stiffly behind her back. She stammered nervously, "B… but Lady Chalice, he is. Look."

Chalice then turned her head towards the general congregation. Her eyes widened, stopping at only one figure.

She dashed forward and cried, "Onii-chan!" Sayer tensed in his place when Chalice jumped into his arms, embracing him tightly. "Oh, onii-chan, I'm so glad to see you in one piece, considering that Heart psycho was there! I was so worried!"

Allysia coughed loudly, garnering the female knight's reluctant attention. "Hello? What about me?"

The blue-haired woman's disinterest turned into vague surprise. "Oh… you're alive? I'm kinda surprised that stupid knight didn't kill you like I thought he would."

The foreigner turned her head away, more so to conceal that brief look of irritation. '_Selfish witch… all she cares about is Sayer and wouldn't even notice if I died._'

The female knight's brother promptly separated himself from her, scolding her, "I thought you were completing business. That's why I went on the search party. I usually took care of these kinds of things, but you complained you were too tired to help out."

Chalice sniffed proudly and proclaimed, "I did! I just did it quicker and more bluntly than you usually did it. I told them Diamant wanted a strip of their land and that was that."

"And I refused," the raven Mafioso added, his calm expression twisting slightly at the irritating thought.

"And then I took a nap so I could talk to you about our next course of action. I say we take it by force!" She winked and tapped her hairpin.

"Yeah! We'd happily take you on!" The twins readied themselves, axes poised in their eager hands.

Chalice clapped her hands together. "Ooh! How fun! The Bloody Twins versus the Blood Diamonds? Unfortunately for you two, I already can predict the victors." Chalice settled herself in a defensive stance, fussing to remove the pin in her hair. "Onii-chan, let's...!"

The blue-haired woman squeaked, crying out in pain when her brother grabbed onto her ear and roughly dragged her away.

"No, we are not getting such unnecessary violence. Lord Diamant told us to just talk to the Hatter, and we did. No need to push it. We are going home." The young girl looked at him with a petulant pout, yelping even louder when he tugged her ear. "Thank you for your time, Hatter. Good day, everyone."

Then the two Diamonds disappeared into the forest depths. Blood released an exasperated sigh, roughly massaging his throbbing temples. "How troublesome… whenever we have those two around, Chalice insists on giving me such a headache…"

"Honestly, I'd rather have them than their king come! Ah, my eyes still burn from his last visit…" Elliot shivered at the thought.

"Aw, but we wanted to play with them! Not fair." The twins pouted at the lost prospect of a fight.

"I'm in need of tea. Hopefully that can soothe me of the pain in my skull." As the four Hatter role holders turned towards the door, Blood said, "We will be having dinner soon. Why don't you go freshen up, milady?"

Allysia nodded her head and watched them disappear behind the doorway. She tiredly trudged herself over to the maid. "Hey, maybe you could help me get…"

Before she could say anything more, the maid squeaked and ran off. She blinked and scratched her chin thoughtfully. "Huh… what a weird maid…"

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

The rest of the day continued on monotonously. Before she knew it, she was in bed, heading off into the realm of dreams. She impatiently tapped her foot, turning her head in search of the silver-haired incubus.

Each night, she and Nightmare had a friendly chat, discussing her day and filling her in on minor worldly details – the parts of the game's mysterious rules, tidbits about the inhabitants, and topics along those lines. He had never told er any of those details himself or went too in depth; she had to ask him herself.

And at the moment, she had tons to ask him about.

'_I just never know how to exactly say it…_'

One question she had been meaning to ask was concerning Sayer. Ace's words only made her even more curious about that mysterious Diamond Knight. Her other question was about her last dream – the one with her mother and Eclaire.

She grasped her forearms and fought back a shiver. Nightmare had told her his duty was to try make her dreams comfortable and pleasant, but he was not perfect. He can't help, but allow a few bad ones slip through.

'_But why that one?_'

It was questions like these that made her want Nightmare to hurry up and get over here – fast.

"Allysia?" She snapped her head around, expecting to see Nightmare floating behind her.  
Instead, she saw another man with bright, red hair. She took a step back, uncomfortable by such close proximity. "J… Joker?"

The circus clown nodded his head. "Yes, that is me. Why? Are you disappointed?"

"N… no, it's not that! It's just that I have so many questions to ask Nightmare… and before I can even think of an answer, another one just pops out of nowhere." She exhaled a haggard sigh, running a hand through her long locks. "Just what is up with Sayer?"

"Oh? So the young lady is still curious at Sayer it seems. Still not frightened him or feel inclined to stay away from him?" The brunette looked at him, perplexed by such a statement, and shook her head. His blood red eye glimmered. "Interesting. You seem so tired. Please, relax."

With a snap of his fingers, Allysia gasped, collapsing down into a chair. She looked at him surprise. "J… Just how did you do this?"

He sat himself down on his own chair and smiled. "I am still something like a dream demon. Though this is not my domain, I still have some sway in this realm. Not as much as Nightmare, but I just a bit."

"Then do you know anything about my dreams?" she asked, the words bursting out of her mouth.

Joker airily shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe, maybe not. Does it matter? Why? Do you think me responsible for a particular one?"

Allysia opened her mouth to question him, but then clamped it shut. Her body shivered, unable to voice her dreams into words. It was just too frightening to admit. It seemed so real. Even though she's not sure what this place was anymore – a dream, a figment of her imagination, an alternate reality, whatever – she was sure of one thing. She was gone from her family for a long time.

What would they think when they see she's not there anymore? Will they think Allysia abandoned them? Will they hate her for it? Just like the Eclaire and her mother in her dream had hated her?

Her heart twisted painfully in her chest. That dream had brought to light one of her greatest fears – of losing those two people she so dearly loved and having them hate her. It bitterly raised that little voice in her mind that begged her to go home and leave.

Joker remained silent and observed Allysia's expression, watching it succumb to a sudden wave of longing and melancholia. Bemused, he felt his lips curl into a smile.

"Would you like to play a game with me?"

She was broken of her reverie, dumbly staring at appearance of a table. She turned her gaze up to Joker, her expression befuddled.

Still, his cheerful expression did not waver. He repeated, "Would you like to play a game with me?"

"No, I'm tired of all these games. All I want now is answers," she demurred, crossing her arms stubbornly across her chest.

She watched his eyes sparkled with an almost devious light as he placed a deck of cards on the table. "Answers you say? Why not we make a deal then? Defeat me in a single card game, and I'll tell you everything you want to know."

She straightened her spine, eyes widening in astonishment. She blurted out, "Really?"

He nodded his head and skillfully shuffled the deck. "Yes, but that's only _if_ you defeat me in a single card game. I must warn you, that it won't be easy. It is unlikely you can win."

"Tch, ha! I'll have you know, I'm great at several card games! Winning this will be a cinch," Allysia said confidently, cracking her fingers and setting herself up in anticipation.

The mask on Joker's waist scoffed. "Yeah right! We'll see about that, girly."

"Would you like to choose the game or shall we?"

"Black jack." It was easy, quick, and she always had great judgment when it came to that game. She could totally win. "Best two out of three?"

"Perfect."

He skillfully dealt out the cards. She quickly glanced over to her two cards and smiled. A solid 19. She then saw his set of cards – a mere 10.

"I'll think I'll hold."

"Rather confident, hm? Just as confident as you are in this world?" Allysia tensed, narrowing his eyes at his implications. He dealt out a single card – a 3. Now his total was 13. "You know of this world's dangers, and yet you still put your trust into its people without a shadow of a doubt – the Hatters, Clovers, Hearts, Amusement Park, and Diamonds… even in me. It could easily turn out that those people who swear to protect you may lead you to your downfall."

Her mind then immediately thought of Ace. He did say he entertained the thought of killing her… she was fearfully aware that there may be a day where he may make those thoughts a reality. He dealt another card. Her eyes widened, staring in shock at the 7.

"Ah, looks like I have a 20! I think I will stop right there."

"Looks like we won this round!" the mask proclaimed with a cackle.

Her lips tightened into a thin line. "It's not over yet. Deal the cards, Joker."

With a blithe smile, the red-haired clown complied, dealing her yet another pair of cards. She noticed she had a 17 while he had a 15.

She placed a finger over her lips, contemplating her next course of action. Though her cards were very high, he could very easily obtain something higher than hers. Should she hold or should she ask for another? She couldn't be rash; one more loss, and she would lose this game entirely.

"I'll hold again."

"Really? What an interesting move. Are you sure about that?"

"As sure as I've ever been in this country," she replied firmly. "You know, you're right. The people here can easily kill me if they want to. I'm defenseless. My judgment of character is horrible. What's stopping them? Well, I should be asking, what's stopping _you_?" She tilted her head to the side and her lips curled into a coy smile. "Is it because of the game? Am I still alive because of my supposed role?"

His gaze suddenly turned cool and passive as he dealt another card. He frowned while his opponent smiled even wider.

"Ah, too bad. You drew a 9! That's way over 21! I win this round. Looks like we're tied now."

Joker looked at Allysia's triumphant countenance, seeming pleasantly surprised by her comeback. His mask counterpart reacted otherwise.

"Oi, Joker! What the hell are you doing? You should be sweeping the floor with a chick like her!" The brunette foreigner narrowed her gaze into a heated glare.

The clown chuckled and reassuringly tapped his mask. "Now, now, Joker! No need to get upset just yet! We still have one round left."

One round left. One round that she had to win in order to get the knowledge she so dearly craved.

Joker quickly cleared the table and passed out the next pair of cards. She cursed underneath her breath. Joker had a solid twenty while she only had a measly eleven. In order to win, she needed to gain a perfect twenty-one.

"Haha, don't plan on holding again, are you?" the mask teased.

She slapped the table in answer. "Hit me."

Joker pleasantly complied, dealing another card. She bit her lip and thoughtfully tapped her fingers against her chin. Now her total was a nineteen. In order to win the game, she needed a two.

"Actually, I doubt anyone in this country has realized your role in this new game. The only thing stopping them is because you are a foreigner. Everyone is obligated to love you." He rested his head on the back of his chin. "Now doesn't that bother you at all?"

"Of course it does! It's damn annoying. It's impossible to say you love someone when you just met them. Real love doesn't even exist anyway!"

"My, aren't you a cynical foreigner? So you mean to tell me you don't have anyone that you love romantically in your world? " Her expression hardened ever so slightly, dropping her gaze down to the cards. "Or perhaps you had. Let me guess! You had loved someone whole-heartedly, but that person dumped you for another, leaving you completely heartbroken. Am I right?"

Her teeth clamped onto her bottom lip. Her nails dug into the palms of her hand.

"You couldn't be more wrong… How could I be dumped when I wasn't technically his in the first place?" Such a statement puzzled the clown. He perked up and stared at her in genuine astonishment. "Now, deal another card, Joker."

The red-haired man observed the girl's expression for a moment before releasing a sigh. "As you wish."

The final card was dealt. Allysia held her breath as she examined it.

Her heart sank, falling into the very pits of her stomach. The card he gave her was a ten.

"I'm way over…" she mumbled dismally. She gritted her teeth, hearing the mask's squeaky, mocking laughter

"Ah, I guess that means we win, sucker! Told you that you can't beat us!"

"But that was a very good game, Allysia. It's been awhile since I had so much fun," Joker assured her with a gentle smile.

"Yeah, yeah… Now let's go again! I want to play another game!" she demanded

"Why do that? You know you'd just lose again!" the mask asked, confident in their victory.

"Now look here, you stupid mask! I used to rock at this game in my world! I'm not letting you guys beat me so easily! I demand a rematch!"

"Heheheh… what a sore loser! You must _like_ getting your ass handed to you, huh?"

She slammed her palms into the table, nerves pulsing against her temples. "Why don't you try coming out and tell me that to my face, Black? I'd love to show you what I think of your snide comments with my fist!"

The two Jokers couldn't help, but laugh. "My, what a coincidence! You have started to refer to us in the same way as the last outsider."

Her anger cooled, and she poutily placated herself in her seat. "Well, it makes sense to me. You both are just so different. It's easier to refer to you with nicknames rather than calling you both Joker. You're much more polite and sophisticated, earning the nickname White Joker. On the other hand, that mask on your hip is a total ass. I figured his clock heart must be as cold and black as his dirty mouth so Black Joker seemed to fit."

"What did you say, you smartass? It is on now!" his mask yelled in outrage. "Come on, Joker! Throw down those cards and beat her to a freakin' pulp!"

White Joker chuckled nervously as he shuffled the deck. "Uh, I simply wanted to play a fun game, Joker…"

"That's it! You're on! If anyone is going to get pummeled in this next game, it will be you guys! Pass out the cards, White! I'm ready!"

The clown could only stare. Allysia blue eyes boiled over, glaring at the mask on his hip. The tension in the air was almost tangible, feeling the dangerous sparks of electricity threatening to char them all. Really, how did a simple game turn into something like this? He released a tired sigh.

* * *

**A/N Notes:** You know, I have no idea who I'm going to pair Allysia with anymore… there's a few that stand out more in my mind (evident in this fic in several), but now I don't know anymore… Eh, I'm sure I'll work it out as the story continues! Who knows? It may surprise me with someone I never thought of. :3

But I'm on a writing high for this story. Why? Because I am mega determined to finish it. I know there's probably a bunch like this (foreigner other than Alice coming into Wonderland), but I'm way too attached to it to let it go.

Thanks for reading~


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

**The Not Alice**

The melody was soft and lilting as the musician's fingers swept across the piano's ivory keys. It was nothing truly spectacular, the expected product when following the notes on a sheet of music. Still, that did not stop anyone from being amazed, hearing probably the sweetest music that room had ever heard.

Allysia read the last notes of music and tapped the final few keys. The music lingered in the air before disappearing quietly. She released a breath and turned her head towards her single audience member.

"Well, Gowland? How was that?" The Amusement Park owner seemed unable to speak. He merely stared at her, his bright green eyes glinting with a strange sparkle. Allysia flinched back, seeing the man lean forward, the gleam in his eyes intensifying. She wasn't sure how to feel and chose to fall back on her usual instincts on situations such as these – to be scared. "Gowland? What's the matter? Was it really that bad?"

"Was it bad?" He suddenly grabbed her shoulders, his eyes widening a frightening degree. "That was fantastic! I had never heard anything as great as that!"

"Oh, you're just being nice… I was just playing what's on the sheet of music. If anyone's amazing, it's the person who wrote it."

Though Gowland's words were flattering, she knew better than to be disillusioned by such flattery. It was just an instrument she could decently play; the only reason why she even played for him was because he discovered her interest in the instrument and asked her. No matter how much she didn't want to, she could not find it within her heart to refuse him.

"But I still say you have some serious skill. Whenever I tried playing that piece, I could never get it right."

'_Hmm… I wonder why?_' She promptly bit her tongue and smiled, keeping such thoughts to herself.

Piano playing in itself was just a fun hobby she picked up when she was child. The piano always struck her as a pretty instrument, able to make beautiful music with a simple tap of its keys. It was something she liked fiddling around with in her spare time… which, of course, her father tainted, claiming she had talent and could be a great musical virtuoso if she worked.

Though could play the piano okay, she knew she could never be the next great Mozart or Beethoven. She did not have the ambition or talent to be worthy of even being grouped with them. So her father finally let that musical dream drop after she struggled to master her third instrument.

"So if you can play the piano, are there any other instrument you can play?"

"Well, I can play the clarinet, and I can barely play the cello," she admitted, perhaps exaggerating her proficiency in the stringed instrument. She could only play really basic songs, and never had the courage to play anything more complicated like Bach's or Dvořák's cello pieces.

At the mention of the cello, Gowland's elation increased. He nearly shook her in excitement. "You can play the cello? Why, that's only a bigger version of my violin! Hey, I should teach you how to play that! It should be easy considering you can play a cello!"

A shiver raced down her spine and pulled herself out of Gowland's vice grip. "Uh, that's kind of you to offer, but I'd much rather pass."

Her reasons were perfectly understandable. If she disliked learning how to play the cello so much, she could not imagine learning to play a smaller version of it. '_It's probably a mini instrument from hell!_'

The other reason was because of that one time she was there, when another mysterious man played the violin. At the thought, she felt her face flush, and she turned her head towards another part of the room.

She still wondered who that mysterious man was. Considering his proximity to Gowland and his reactions to said man, it was easy for her to assume it as a lover's affection – just like Vivaldi and Blood's situation in the rose garden.

Even now, she couldn't bring herself to look at Gowland for too long. The question was too curious, and it begged to be answered. Considering Gowland's mercurial temperament, she doubted even her foreigner appeal could save her from a bullet to the head.

Her lashes fluttered, her eyes attracted to a single picture on a table. She pointed and asked, "Hey, Gowland, who's that?"

He followed her outstretched hand, and only smiled. "Oh, that's a picture taken a long time ago when I was faceless child!"

She snapped her head towards him, her interest piqued. She jumped off the piano stool and walked over to the photo frame. It was an old picture, most of its images corroded by time, the once vibrant colors fading away to a bland monochrome. Still she could make out two images. "Who's the kid next to you, Gowland?"

"Who you're probably looking at is… my little brother."

She gasped, inwardly excited to hear that her previous theories of a sibling relationship may be true. She glued her eyes onto the photograph, examining the two faded figures carefully. The younger one's frame was very thin and scrawny, a sharp contrast to presumably Gowland's larger, more muscular build. Though the picture was faded, she could still tell they looked very much alike, similar features and smiles on their faces.

"How come I never heard that you had a brother before?"

"Because we're not supposed to mention it." Her eyes knitted together and looked over to the Amusement Park owner, puzzled. "When we take up our roles, we are supposed to put behind our past, faceless live and concentrate on the present, our current roles. Though perhaps some people are better off forgetting everything, I prefer to remember... though I wouldn't talk about with anyone else of course."

"I guess that means you two aren't able to see each other then," she commented sadly, both dismayed by the admission and that her theory was shot down once again.

"For the most part. I haven't seen that brother of mine until now…"

"What?"

"Oh? You never figured it out yet? My brother is actually a servant to the Diamond regime! I guess it's hard to tell with his current crazy getup, but I think if you look close enough, you can tell. You're probably the only one who can. Unfortunately, we can't talk to each other, considering our territories."

Again, that flicker of hope was promptly doused. She pouted at the thought and then asked, "So what's his name?"

"Damon Gowland," he replied with a small smile. "Oh the irony… At least our mother was kind enough to give him a normal name!"

Allysia choked back a laugh and fought to ascertain her poise. She was struck by remembrance and said, "Oh, sorry for dawdling like this! You did hire me after all to help out here!"

'_Because that Hatter had the audacity to sell my services… _again_._'

"Oh, don't think of it as work! I just wanted to give you time away from that despicable bastard. Worth every penny," he assured her cheerily, his voice carrying slight undertones of hostility. "You can do small stuff here and there if you like, but I'm just happy you're here!"

'_And I'm even happier that you said I didn't need to wear the uniform._' She mentally gagged. The Amusement Park's uniform was too bright and gaudy for her tastes. She'd probably die of embarrassment if she had to wear such clothes. '_Maybe hanging out here won't be too bad…_'

"Hey, old man! Are you guys done here?" Allysia jumped in surprise to Boris appear by her side, hooking his arm urgently around hers. "It's important employee business! I need to take Allysia right now!"

Gowland's eyes narrowed skeptically, studying the Cheshire Cat. Still Boris's expression remained solemn and earnest, his golden eyes fearlessly meeting his. After another moment of scrutiny, The violinist sighed dismissively and waved them off. "Fine. You can take her. You two kids have fun with… whatever 'important business' you have to do."

The pink feline's face lit up. "Thanks, old man!" Boris then raced out the door, dragging a bewildered foreigner behind him.

"Boris, where are we going? What's this important business?" she inquired, struggling to keep up with his brisk pace.

"You'll see! I promise you that this is really important!" he assured her, his eyes glimmering with excitement.

Allysia stared at him, clearly skeptical, but continued following him nonetheless. Soon she tensed at the sound of a loud, mechanical roar, intrinsically tightening her grip on the Cheshire Cat. "What was that?"

His smile widened. "That was it! Our really important business is…"

The two finally stopped. Allysia blinked in disbelief.

With a dramatic flourish of his arms, he announced, "To test out these new go-carts!"

All she could stare at the two pink and purple carts, their metal coats glinting in the sunlight. The purple cart roared to life, its engine thundering against her ears. The twins peaked their heads out and waved. "Hey, onee-chan! Isn't this neat?"

Her countenance fell completely blank, gawking first at the twins and back to the Cheshire Cat. She deadpanned, "You three are _idiots_. I thought this was actually important."

Boris clicked his tongue and wagged in his finger. "Au contraire! This is important. These go-carts have been recently built, and it is our duty to make sure they function properly."

"Then why am I still here? There's no way I'm driving one of those," she said, taking a single step away from the cars.

She flinched, feeling Boris's arms settle around her shoulders and pull her closer. "No need to worry about that. I'll be the one driving! I just needed a partner to fill in the empty seat next to me."

The twins scoffed. "Liar! It's not really empty! You were supposed to be partnered with that rat!"

"Yeah, it's not fair that you get to be onee-chan!"

The pink cat growled at the two children, golden eyes narrowing into a glare. "Me? With that rat? Fat chance! That stupid mouse would just whine and cry the whole time!" The twins still scoffed and mumbled crossly under their breaths. Boris then turned his attention back to the foreigner. "So do you want to take a spin in it with me?"

Allysia stared at him for a few moments, then at the twins and the two cars. She sighed. What could be the harm?

Just before she could open her mouth to give her reply, she suddenly gagged, feeling something wrap tightly around her neck.

"No, chu! Meany cat will not force Ally-chan to go on those scary cars!" Pierce cried, pulling the foreigner tightly into his chest.

"I was not forcing her, you dumb rat! I was giving her a choice," Boris snarled, causing the Dormouse to flinch away, clinging onto Allysia even tighter. "Now, just let her go."

Pierce shook his head. "N… no! I won't let you make Ally-chan ride with you with those metal death traps if I can help it!"

"P…Pierce, it's okay." The mouse's green eyes glanced down, surprised to hear her speak. She struggled to squirm out of his suffocating hold and rasped, "I'll be just fine. I'll ride it."

Pierce studied Allysia expression for a long moment, seemingly ignorant to the tinge of blue touching her oxygen-deprived features. "Alright… If Ally-chan wants to."

He finally released her from his grasp. The foreigner took in a deep breath, filling her empty lungs with as much as air as she could. Before she could properly recover from her nearly fatal experience, Boris swept her off her feet and deposited her into the cart.

"Yes! I knew you couldn't resist a good adrenaline rush!" Boris settled in the seat beside her and readied himself.

"Well as long as Gowland is okay with all this, then I'm okay with it."

"Psh! Of course that old man is okay with all this!"

"No, he doesn't even know about this!" interjected the Dormouse.

Allysia nearly jumped out of her seat. "What?"

"Rat, shut up!" Boris then looked to his side, seeing her shoot him a fierce glare. "Oh, don't be mad! Just ignore the rat and buckle up."

Allysia complied and belted herself in. "So, where's the track then?"

Boris's smile widened, his eye glittering in anticipation. "…what track?"

Her eyes widened. Her blood suddenly ran cold. "Um, actually, I think I change my mind! Maybe it's best if I just sit this one o…"

"LET'S GO!"

All the air pushed out of her lungs as the two competitors raced forward. As they weaved through the masses of people, dodging carts and other obstacles, Allysia could only watch, far too frightened to close her eyes. Her stomachs twisted into sickening knots.

'_Oh boy… this isn't going to end well…_'

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"We won!"

"What are you two talking about? We were the ones that won!"

"Are you blind, Bpris? We definitely arrived here first!"

"You guys are such cheaters. No, you didn't! You definitely came behind us. Right, Allysia?"

Allysia managed to arouse herself from her stupor, momentarily amazed that she was still alive. She then remembered Boris's question. Recovering some sense of composure, she managed to reply, "To me, it looked like a tie."

Of course, she didn't really know. She was too busy praying for her life to notice who came first.

Three boys released a unified groan of disappointment.

"Well, it can't be helped I guess… It looks another race is in order."

The twins eagerly nodded their heads in agreement, settling themselves excitedly in their seats. Their go-carts roared back to life, stabbing Allysia' heart with fear.

"Get ready…"

"Get set…"

"No!" The three boys froze in their seats, stopping themselves from slamming on the accelerator. They glanced over to the foreigner in confusion. "No more racing. I think you guys did enough damage already – both to my heart and to this park."

The four of them then examined their surroundings. Almost everything was a complete mess. Stalls and carts were smashed and destroyed. Food and toys were scattered haphazardly around the crack floors. Allysia shivered when she saw small pools of blood, consequences for those faceless who didn't move fast enough.

The twins decided to look at this grim situation in a positive light. "Ah, you always did say the old man wanted to renovate some places of the Amusement Park, Boris!"

"Now he can!"

Boris attempted to laugh, following Allysia's lead and jumped out of the car. "Well, maybe it isn't that bad. We've done worse. That old man can't be too mad…"

As if to answer his question, the sound of bullets sounded in the air. "**BORIS!**"

"Ally-chan!" At the sound of the mouse's voice, she instinctively braced herself. Pierce dashed beside them, his usually skittish disposition seeming all the more frantic. "Ally-chan, you better run! Gowland is furious and is on a rampage!"

"Got it!"

The five of them raced forward, branching out into separate directions. Allysia chose to escape the Amusement Park and dove into the forest for shelter. She couldn't fathom the idea of staying put in that place, especially when Gowland was in a trigger-happy rampage. Her feet carried her through the sylvan ground, pounding against the dirt and debris.

The sounds of the Park silenced and faded in the distance. Allysia slowed her stride and inhaled deeply to calm her heart.

'_At least I'll be safe now…_'

Then she glanced up, startled to see a familiar glass castle.

Of all places she could run to, she had to end up near the Castle of Diamonds.

She stood there and stared, grazing her fingertips against the cold castle gates. It was still as breathtaking as the last time she saw it, sparkling underneath the overhead sun.

'_This place is the home of the Diamond role holders, especially the territory king._'

Diamant. The very name sent a shudder down her spine. She was not sure what to expect from such a man. She had only heard a few passing words concerning the man, the one who Chalice and Sayer served with the utmost loyalty and devotion. She pictured Diamant as fierce and majestic, withholding an imposing presence that could make her shrink in overwhelming inferiority.

'_Though the others do say other strange things… how gaudy and garish he can be…_' And more importantly to stay away from him. '_But why?_'

For the most part, she followed their advice and took great pains into making sure she avoided him entirely. The more she spoke to Sayer and interacted with Chalice, the more curious she felt about the castle and its mysterious king. Now, she felt like some of the answers to her questions were behind these gates.

'_Especially considering that Joker told me squat last night…_'

Her hands balled up into tight fists, still fuming over the thought. All she had to do was beat Joker in a simple a card game. Then he would freely tell her the answers the questions she had.

But Allysia lost every single round.

'_Even if I don't want to see any of those role holders, I at least want to face Joker again for a rematch! I never got beaten so badly before!_'

Gathering up her courage (and the remainder of her shattered pride), she walked closer to the castle gates.

"What are you doing here?" Allysia took a step back, surprised to see Chalice standing directly before her. Her blue eyes seemed colder and harder than usual, as if trying to freeze the foreigner's existence on the spot.

Allysia shook off such thoughts and said, "I was just passing through and ended up here. That's all." Chalice huffed, clearly dubious by such a response. Allysia simply turned to face the castle, staring at its blue, glass walls in wonder. "Say… is Sayer or Joker here today?"

From corners of her eyes, Chalice seemed taken aback by such a question. Her expression hardened, her lips tightening into a thin line. She coolly spat out, "My onii-chan is still out finishing a mission. As for Joker-sama… it's none of your business!"

The brunette managed to hold her ground, absorbing Chalice subtle hostility with grace. She kept her gaze forward, trying to come up with something else to say.

"What's your relationship to them?" Allysia flinched back when Chalice drew even closer, appearing directly by her side. The Diamond Knight's eyes narrowed, boring holes into the foreigner's face as she awaited for a response.

Allysia swallowed a large lump in her throat. "Um, I guess acquaintance?"

"Then why do you want to see them?"

"Uh… just because…" Allysia was far too frightened by Chalice's intimidating glare to come up with anything more intelligible.

Why the Diamond Knight treated her in such a manner was beyond her. Whenever Chalice was near her, she pretended that Allysia did not exist. When she did acknowledge her presence, she usually treated her with feigned kindness and insulted her in some way.

_Chalice's only motivations are her king and brother. Anyone who dares affect either of those two people tend to get on her bad side. Chalice probably feels you threaten to break the people she dearly cares for._

Nightmare's words echoed in her ear. Was that all it was? Chalice thinking she posed a threat?

'_To what? Her relationship with her brother and king? There must be more than that if she dislikes me so much…_'

"I hate you."

Allysia snapped her attention back to the Diamond Knight, blinking in disbelief. Chalice took a step back and smiled widely, pleased by her admission.

The brunette blurted out an unintelligible, "What?"

"I. Hate. You." She threw her head back and released a light, musical laugh. "Oh, you have no idea how glad that I am able to say it so sincerely!"

Chalice advanced towards her with an even brighter smile on her face. Allysia's warm blues locked on Chalice's glacial ones. "I hate you as I hated that last outsider that came before you… though I supposed there's no real difference between you two. You look exactly like Alice, minus your eye color."

"Yeah, so I've been told thousands of times..." the foreigner mumbled crossly under her breath.

Chalice head tilted to the side, beaming with delight. "Oh do you? Well then, you certainly must have wondered if these people actually love _you_, foreigner."

"What do you mean by that?"

Her eyes glittered. "So you _haven't_ thought of it! Haven't you ever wondered if everyone actually loves _you_ and not how you look, not the one they all used to love? You're not that special, _Ally-chan_. Do you think that the bunny picked you to bring here was by sheer coincidence? That the twin's high regard, Elliot's protection, as well as the Hatter's interest are really because of _you_? Ace taking you off on various camping trips because _you_ are so special? That theses territory's are treating you any differently from the last one?" The knight cackled hysterically. "You _are_ a funny one then if you think that!"

Allysia fell completely still. Her eyes widened and intrinsically fell to the floor. She struggled to keep her breathing even and maintain her composure. Still, she was struck by her words.

'_Was that all true? Are they treating me the same as the previous foreigner... as Alice?_'

"Face it. You are nothing to the people on this country. You're just our replacement Alice." Allysia's breath caught in her throat, allowing the breadth of the knight's words to sink into her mind, chilling the blood in her veins. She gasped, feeling the cold barrel of Chalice's gun pressed against her forehead. "I cannot stand pathetic individuals like you. It makes me _sick_. What I wouldn't give to be able to blow this bullet through your head and end this here and now..."

Chalice's eye suddenly darkened, gleaming with the same manic gleam she had seen before. For a moment, Allysia was sure she was going to do it. She watched numbly as the knight's slender fingers sat precariously on the revolver's trigger.

"Chalice!"

Both girls jumped at the sound of the voice and snapped their heads. Chalice's pale cheeks flushed, her eyes sparkling with a bright, euphoric light. Her firearm reverted back into its harmless pin form as she cried, "Joker-sama!"

Allysia released a breath of relief, watching the blue-haired woman leap forward and wrap her arms around the red-haired clown.

Ignoring her proximity, Joker chastised her, "Now, Chalice, what do you think you were doing? You know you are not to harm Miss Allysia in any way."

Chalice's face twisted into a pout as she whined, "I wasn't going to _really_ do anything! Diamant ordered us not to so I won't!"

The foreigner beside them wondered otherwise, still feeling the cold metal burn through her head.

"But why are you here, Allysia? I certainly wasn't expecting you," Joker asked.

"Well after some... unexpected circumstances at the Amusement Park, I ended up here. I was hoping to maybe visit you or the other role holders," she admitted, ignoring Chalice's intense stare.

His red orb sparkled, astonished by her statement. "You wanted to visit me? Why, I'm touched."

"All I want is a rematch! I usually rock at those card games, and I'm not letting a clown show me up!" she countered defensively.

Still Joker smiled pleasantly, flustering her even more. "Well, I'd love to play again, but I'm actually busy at the moment. I was supposed to retrieve Chalice for a meeting with the territory leader."

"He's starting the meeting without onii-san?" the blue-haired woman inquired in surprise.

"We've gotten word that Sayer is still caught up in his business... unlike another mischievous girl I know. King Diamant doesn't like being kept waiting."

Chalice obediently nodded her head and waved cheerily at the brunette. "Well, I have to go! Be careful when you're walking back, you hear?" She turned and pushed the gates open. "Bye, Miss _Not_ Alice!"

The gates shuddered to a close. The blue knight disappeared.

"Was that girl bothering you?"

She limply shook her head. "No, Chalice didn't bother me at all..."

She just felt strange and numb inside. The knight's words distraught her. Was that all she was to them, all she was good for in this country? To play the role of a replacement Alice?

'_I suppose I should be used to it. People in my own world want me as someone else too..._' She thought sadly, dropping her gaze to the floor.

"Oi, dumbass, stop making such a stupid face!" She snapped her head up, gawking at Joker in disbelief. The man stared back with the same perplexed look on his face. Blue and red eyes then glanced down at the mask questioningly.

Black Joker then shouted, "That knight is just whiny brat who wants all the attention on her! I wouldn't give damn to her moaning and ranting!"

Allysia gawked at the trinket for a few long moments before she came to a conclusion.

'_No, it can't be... that annoying thing wasn't really trying to do _that_..._'

"No matter what that chick said, either way you're still a dumbass. Don't let that chick tell you otherwise."

Her eyes widened. He really was doing it. She stood there shocked for a moment, half expecting the apocalypse to begin.

Seeing nothing happened, she kneeled down to the mask's level and smirked. "Black, I'm touched! You're trying to comfort for me, aren't you?"

The mask fell completely silent. Joker sputtered, his hand flying to his mouth to conceal his laughter.

"What the _hell_ are you talking about? I was doing no such thing! You're stupid face was just starting to get on my nerves. That's all!"

Allysia giggled, irking the mask even more. "Sure, Black. Who knew you had a heart after all? I think I saw it grow three sizes today!"

"Shut the hell up!"

Allysia giggled once more with White Joker even joining her.

"But Joker is right. Please don't take Chalice to heart. She's always been a blunt and rough around the edges. It's quite unfortunate that you two couldn't have gotten along better." Joker sighed dismally at the thought and turned towards the gates. "Well, I must be going! I am supposed to attend this special meeting as well. Take care, Allysia. Just stay true to yourself, and you will be just fine."

She nodded her head and waved goodbye, watching Joker slip through the gates and make his way through the castle. She deliberated to take her leave as well, turning around and walking back to the Park.

She bit her lip. '_Stay true to myself? What's the supposed to mean?_'

She had been living behind these given roles for so long – the perfect daughter, the ladylike woman, that one person that Terrence had wanted – that she felt she had forgotten who she was. She was good at playing these roles to please those people, pretending it didn't bother her when she failed utterly. How was she to stay true to herself when she wasn't even sure who she really was?

The familiar sound of laughter caught her attention. She quickened her pace and ran forward, seeing a familiar trio make its way through the forest ground. The cat and the two children chatted on in their usual carefree and enthusiastic way… whilst covered in a disturbing tinge of scarlet.

She gasped and shouted, "Guys, are you okay?"

The three turned towards the panicked foreigner and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry! Not all of this is our blood," Boris said with a wink.

The red twin explained, "When we all got separated, we found some Heart soldiers walking past this place, and my brother decided to play with them for a bit! Then Boris came out of nowhere to join the fun!"

The three shamelessly raised their respective firearms, hinting at their violent choice of fun.

Her countenance contorted in outrage. She placed her hands on her hips and scolded them, "But that is just plain stupid! Look at you. You three got hurt playing that so-called game! Don't you care about your lives at all? I don't like seeing you three like this!" The three flinched at her scolding, but they couldn't help, but smile. Their eyes glimmered, retaining an almost nostalgic light. Allysia struggled to keep her voice steady and strong. "W… well? What do you guys have to say for yourselves?"

The three exchanged a single glance, their faces softening.

"Of course, Allysia. I understand." Boris said and purred quietly, "Foreigners seem to think that same way, don't they?"

Such a statement perplexed her. Before she could question him, she felt her body tense when three pairs of arms wrapped around her tiny frame. She blinked and looked around, staring at each pair of red, blue, and gold.

"Okay, onee-chan, we promise not to do anything reckless again!" Dee vowed.

"We don't like making you upset… We love onee-chan too much!" Dum added with a smile, burying his head into her warmth.

All she could do was wrap her arms around them, unable to say another word. Doubt nibbled in her mind, invading her senses.

She couldn't help but wonder… just who was it did they really love? Did they really love _her_? …or were they still in love with the girl she resembled – Alice?

'_Just who am I?_'

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Onee-chan?"

"Don't talk to me."

"But, onee-chan!"

"Seriously. Just be quiet and _don't_ talk to me."

"Well… if it's any consolation, yellow does suit you!"

Stormy blue eyes snapped towards the pink cat, causing the four role holders to shiver in fright and continued working.

Allysia grunted loudly and channeled all her irritation into sweeping away the dust and debris, trying her hardest to ignore the brightness of her sleeves.

Gowland walked over to them to survey their work. "Well, I hope you all are learning your lesson right now."

One of the twins shouted, "But we did nothing wrong! I don't understand why even we have to help clean up the mess."

"We don't even live in this territory! It's not even that bad anyway."

"Or why we all have to wear this outfit…" the foreigner grumbled under her breath, unsure whether she should be amused or appalled seeing the twins, Boris, and Pierce dress in the Park's uniform. Glancing down once again at her own outfit, she chose the latter.

The owner's brow twitched. "Not that bad? With your race, you guys wrecked almost half of my park, not to mention killing off some of my customers! You four are at fault, with Pierce being a passive enabler of the ordeal. All of you deserve to be punished for your crimes and clean up your messes." He rubbed the back of his head, trying to contain his impatience. "Really, your antics managed to destroy a good portion of that rollercoaster _again_. Don't get me started about my missing violin…"

"I told you, old man! Your roller coaster falling apart again was just because of your builders' incompetence, not us!" Boris shouted defensively. "And for the last time, we did not steal your freakin' violin!"

"Of course you didn't. That wasn't the violin I usually used anyway. It's still annoying to have something of mine stolen!" Gowland scoffed. "Probably the Hatter had ordered _someone_ to have it taken from me to get on my nerve, that conceited ass…"

The twins retorted in outrage, "Don't talk about Boss that way! He wouldn't waste his time or he send us to do something like that!"

'_Hmm… so the thief struck once again? To cause antagonism between the Hatter and Gowland's territory?_' She had to commend this person for picking such a great time to do so. Everything would be thrown into such disarray that it would be easy to take anything.

She was sure that the twins were right, and that none of them had stolen it. It still made her wonder who would do something like this…

'_Could it be that the person who tampered with the roller coaster… was the same person who's taking all this stuff?_'

Before she could ponder the thought, the musician announced happily. "But I'm really glad that my violin really wasn't stolen! Here, just to prove that I'm not totally heartless, I'll serenade you guys while you work."

Their expression blanched, staring fearfully as his bow drew closer to those torturous strings. The five immediately slapped their ears and screamed, scrambling to escape from such torturous music.

* * *

A/N Notes: Before questions arise, Gowland's brother is a fictional thing I added to the story. Just so you guys all know.

Other than that… thanks for reading~


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter****18**

**Who Am I?**

_You are no one to the people in this country. You're just our replacement foreigner._

Even several cycles after her encounter with Chalice, Allysia's mind was reeling, repeating those words over and over again like a broken record. She knew she should not be so concerned about it and tried to brush it off.

But she just could not.

It was something that she should be used to by now – everyone wanting her to be someone she's not. Her father's attempts were ignorable while her cousin's was fairly tolerable. But Terrence's…

As she dusted the bookcase, running the feathers over the sleek hardcovers, she found herself thinking back to her past. She recalled one time when Terrence gave her this dress as a present. It was this ridiculously frilly, girly thing that made her poor heart cringe.

"Um, Terrence, you really didn't need to get me this..." Allysia said, forcing a smile on her face as she stared down at her attire, at the overuse of ribbon and fabric.

Terrence frowned, his brows knitting together. "Of course I did. I can spoil you a little if I want. Why? Don't you like it?"

"Well it's not that. It's just that this..." She gazed down at the gift, unable to put the atrocity into words. "Do I really look okay?"

He stepped forward and placed a kiss on her forehead. "You look lovely, Allysia. I've always thought you looked cute in clothes like this."

At his words, at his gentle smile, she felt her heart melt. She could endure this. Just for today if it made him happy.

Like every day when he insisted she wear such things.

She never understood his insistences, but she never bothered to question him when he smiled at her like that.

"Well, are you ready for our picnic?"

Holding the basket up, she nodded her head. Before the two could walk forward, there was a loud squeal.

"Ally!" Allysia's heart froze. She dug her heels firmly into the ground and braced herself. Eclaire came hurtling towards Allysia's side, wrapping her arms around her neck and nuzzling her face against her cousin's cheek. "Oh, Ally, you look so adorable! I love your dress! I'm so happy you became interested in this style too."

Allysia only grumbled under her breath, unable to voice her protests in coherent words. How she secretly hoped her cousin would grow bored with her current obsession... but despite her prayers, Eclaire _still_ was infatuated with such outlandish, cutesy styles.

Though the style of clothing made her cringe, Allysia couldn't help, but notice one thing – her cousin could pull off this style very well. Eclaire was absolutely radiant as any jewel, blonde locks shimmering a vibrant gold, her dress bringing out the emerald hue of her eyes, while Allysia looked as ordinary as a common pebble on the side of the road.

Terrence seemed to notice as well. Allysia felt a pang of envy thrum against her heart, but refused to let it show in her face.

"Actually, I got it as a gift for her." Eclaire released Allysia from her grasp and turned towards Terrence. His smile still graced his features, his eyes glinting in the sunlight.

"Well I commend you on your taste," said Eclaire. "This really suits Ally."

Terrence bowed his head gratefully. "Why, thank you. I'm glad you approve."

Allysia stood numbly to the side, watching the pair begin to talk, only catching snippets of the ensuing conversation. She tried not to notice the intensity in his gaze, giving Eclaire the attention he had never fully given her.

"No, I couldn't possibly! I would be intruding!"

"Nonsense. We have tons of food. Right, Allysia?"

She snapped out of her reverie. She shook her head and asked, "I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention. What were you talking about?"

"I was just inviting your cousin to our picnic. I say the more the merrier! What do you say? Do you mind?" he asked.

Eclaire looked over to her, her gaze soft, yet curious.

'_Yes,__I__mind.__Greatly._'

There was no denying this seed of doubt blossoming in her mind, watching as his gaze on Eclaire never wavered for a moment.

But she brushed it off as her petty paranoia and insecurity. Terrence liked her for who she was. She had nothing to worry about... right?

Allysia smiled weakly and lied. "No, it wouldn't bother me at all."

"Allysia."

She perked up, snapping out of her daze with a languid blink of her eyes. She turned away from the bookcase and towards the source of the voice.

"I believe that one spot on the bookcase has been eradicated of dust. Why don't you relax?" said Blood. The foreigner nodded her head and sat herself down, absently twirling the feather duster in between her palms. "Are you alright? I have been trying to catch your attention for quite some time."

"I'm fine. I'm just… thinking. That's all," she replied, keeping her gaze on the floor. She glanced up for a moment, noticing him study her expression for a long moment before releasing a sigh.

"Well, alright, but I have to call you on your inattentiveness. It's rude to ignore your employer and generous host." Allysia's muscles stiffened at the suggestion. He added in a teasing tone, "If you want to play the role as my maid, you could at least try a little harder acting the part."

She knew he was only teasing her, but for some reason, she couldn't help but get upset.

Allysia slammed the duster on the table and snapped, "Well, I'm sorry that I'm not a little perfect maid. It must be a shame that you have to deal with a disappointment like me."

Blood blinked, taken aback by her sudden ferocity. "Milady, that's not what I meant…"

"Oh, there's no need to lie! I understand perfectly. I'm not the kind of woman you're used to dealing with, am I? What do you want me to do? Flail over you? Serve you hand and knee? I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not that kind of person. I'm sorry I'm not your precious _Alice_. I'm sorry that I'm not the person everyone in this damn country wants me to be – who _you_ want me to be. So just get over it, and stop trying to change me, Terrence!"

After that verbal slip, she slammed her hand over her mouth. Blood merely stared.

Before he could question her, she abruptly turned around, stormed off, and spat out, "I'm going out. I can't take this anymore!"

The Hatter remained silent, allowing the foreigner to storm out of the room, out through the quiet halls.

She had no idea where she was going. She knew she just needed to get out. While rubbing her stinging eyes, she felt her feet carry her through the halls of the mansion and out the door, stomping against the debris of the surrounding forest.

She paused for a moment to catch her breath and pull herself together. She never let something like this bother her, let alone this much. She just wanted these worries to go back to the dark recesses of her mind where they belonged.

Still, Chalice's words rung in her mind, igniting a feeling of doubt in her heart.

_You are no one to the people in this country. You're just our replacement foreigner._

What was she to these people? What was she to anyone for that matter? Was she truly good for nothing, but a replacement?

"Ally-chan!" She flinched, her heart stopping in fear. She could recognize that voice anywhere.

She inwardly cursed, watching a white blur leap out of the brush and rush towards her. "Oh, Ally-chan! How I missed you so!"

Allysia managed to sidestep the surprise assault, sighing in relief as she watched the White Rabbit crumble onto the floor.

"Not that I can say the same... I'm sorry, Peter, but I'm busy at the moment. I need to get going now."

She was in no mood to deal with anyone right now, let alone that clingy rabbit.

Just as she was going to walk away, Peter wrapped his arms around her and forced her to halt. She swore under her breath, struggling to free herself from Peter's iron grip.

"Hey, let me go!" she shouted.

Peter obstinately shook his head and only held her tighter. "No, I haven't seen my dear Ally-chan in ages! Why haven't you visited me?"

'_Let's see… to avoid you?'_

She bit her tongue, finding that admission a bit too harsh and would only cause the White Rabbit to hug her even tighter. Struggling to come up with a politer approach, she lamely supplied, "Uh, you know. I've been busy and all… with stuff."

Peter complained, "But you've been spending too much time away from me! I miss you too much!"

Allysia remained unfazed by the confession. By the lack of oxygen reaching her lungs, the feelings remained unrequited. She managed to free herself from the rabbit's embrace, straightened out her clothes, and began to walk away. "Well, it's been nice seeing you, but I really need to get going. Bye!"

A pair of footsteps resounded behind her.

"No, please stay for awhile!" Allysia kept walking forward, ignoring him entirely. "Please... Please! Don't go! I don't want to lose you again, Alice!"

She froze in her place, her eyes wide with shock. She mumbled softly, "What did you say? Did you call me _Alice_?"

Peter's footsteps quieted down. He didn't say a word. She snapped her head around, blue eyes bright with rage.

"Is that why you missed me so much? Why you even like me? Because of my resemblance to your dear Alice?"

Peter flinched, his expression tinted with melancholy. He answered quietly, "No, of course not... You're both different. I don't know why I said that... I'm sorry..."

The foreigner scoffed. "Oh sure. Then tell me that you did not kidnap me and bring me to this country because I looked like her? That you really 'loved' me just for me!"

Peter froze in his place and looked downcast. His silence spoke volumes.

"That's what I thought," she croaked, her voice suddenly hoarse and her eyes stinging. "Maybe I should just go! No one here really wants me for who I am anyway! No one does! Everyone just wants me to be someone else!"

Before the White Rabbit could utter a word, Allysia was already gone, running deeper into the forest.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

After what felt like an eternity of running, Allysia finally collapsed onto the ground, trying to stop these tears from flowing. Her breath came out in harsh, uneven bursts. Her eyes stung.

No matter what she did, all she could think about were Chalice's words, what Peter called her.

Alice. That was all Allysia was to them. She was nothing more than their replacement. At the thought, she tugged her knees into her chest, burying her head in her knees.

"Ally, that you?"

Allysia didn't move a single muscle. All she wanted was to brood and cry in peace.

The voice did not seem deterred by her lack of response. She felt a finger poke her head. "Ally! Earth to Ally! Are you sleeping or something?"

She intrinsically slapped the hand away and looked up, glaring at a pair of crimson eyes.

She blinked in surprise and quickly wiped her face. Her voice cracked as she said, "Ace? What are you doing here?"

"Trying to find you! I've been looking everywhere! Ha ha ha, I felt like I was walking in circles!" Ace replied cheerfully and seated himself down beside her.

'_More__like__getting__lost__as__per__usual._'

She rolled her eyes and asked, "Why were you trying to find me?"

"Just trying to be a good person and help out that silly rabbit! Mr. White was frantic trying to look for you!" At the mention of Peter, Allysia stiffened. "Haha, Peter is a funny rabbit... saying silly things he doesn't really mean!"

"Oh, he meant it. He's right too. All he and everyone care about is this so-called Alice. I'm merely her replacement," she mumbled crossly under her breath, looking down to stare at her shoes.

The Heart Knight released a trill of laughter. "That's not true! Just as Alice was our friend before, so are you! You both are very different!"

"How so?" she challenged.

Ace paused for a moment, considering how question in his mind. "For one thing, Alice had an excellent sense of direction. You're just like me! You get lost very easily!"

Allysia's expression fell completely blank. "Gee, thanks."

Still, she seemed unconvinced. Ace pondered for a moment, tapping his finger against his chin.

"It's just that... you're different. I don't know how to put it. You are just... Ally. There's no way I'd even think about calling you Alice," he said lamely, shooting her a bright, smile.

Allysia stared at him for a moment and snorted, "Nice try, but I'm not buying it. You're just saying that to make me feel better. I keep being told that I happen to look like her anyway..."

"Hmm... I guess. Haha! I'm not really good at comforting people, am I? I've never been very good with my words," Ace admitted with an abashed laugh.

Allysia grumbled in agreement, but felt a smile threaten to curve her lips. It touched her that Ace had at least tried to cheer her up, though she would never tell him.

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm... Oh! I got it! I know exactly what to do to make you feel much better!"

She had no time to react. Before she knew it, Ace tackled her to the ground, pinning her body down with his own. She was rendered into a quiet daze, looking up at his smiling face, seeing it hover inches from her own.

She swallowed. "A…Ace? W…what are you doing?"

Ace's grin only widened. "I told you that I was never good with words... I've always been a man of action, and I'll make sure you feel much, _much_ better."

Her whole body stiffened when Ace pressed his lips onto her neck. Her cheeks flared red, and she squirmed underneath him, struggling to break free. Ace was much too strong for her, quashing all chances of escape. He continued to pepper her neck and jaw with kisses, laving the sensitive flesh with his tongue.

Then his mouth moved towards her lips.

It was only a fleeting moment of contact, a teasing brush of his lips, not enough to exactly be considered a true kiss, but it was enough to make her breath escape from her lungs. Her mind fell completely blank, forgetting all about Chalice, Peter, everyone. An alien sensation shot through her veins, making her fall still and mute. Her senses were even more aware of his proximity, of the heat pervading through his coat.

The two merely stared at each other, his scarlet orbs staring down at her bright blue ones. His eyes darkened, flashing with an emotion she failed to identify.

Before Ace could lean forward and close what distance separated their lips, a startled squeak interrupted him.

The two snapped their heads towards the voice, noticing a shocked Dormouse stare at them with wide eyes.

"W... What's going on here, chu?" Pierce asked, his cheeks tinted a slight pink. Allysia's exploded into bright red.

Unfazed by their suggestive position, Ace merely smiled his usual smile and rolled off the mortified outsider. "I was just comforting, Ally! That's all!"

Pierce slowly nodded his head, inwardly hoping the scary knight never comforted him in _that_ way. He dropped his gaze to his twiddling fingers and awkwardly shifted in his place.

"W...Well I just went looking for Ally-chan because everyone at the scary Hatter's place is a bit worried, chu. If you're fine then I guess I should go…"

"NO! PIERCE DON'T LEAVE ME!" Faster than any of them thought possible, Allysia leapt to her feet and clung to the Dormouse's arm. Pierce and Ace merely stared, surprised by her suddenly frantic behavior. She cleared her throat, recollected herself, and tried to smile. "I... I mean I'd feel better if you escorted me back to the mansion, Pierce! If I went with the knight, I'd be lost."

Ace grinned. "Hahaha! So true!"

The Dormouse blinked, slightly confused by her behavior, but smiled brightly nonetheless. "Okay! I will take Ally-chan back!"

Allysia sighed in relief, inwardly grateful that Pierce saved her from a potentially dangerous situation. Who knows what would happen if Pierce hadn't interrupted when he did? She shuddered, afraid to think about it further.

The two waved goodbye to the Red Knight and began to make their way back to the Hatter territory.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Thanks for letting me drop by that store really quick. Are you sure the gift is okay?" she asked in concern, hugging the bag close to her chest.

Pierce nodded his head. "It's perfect, chu! Ally-chan is so considerate!"

Allysia chuckled nervously and dropped her gaze to the floor. At the moment she felt far from it...

"Hey, rat, what are you doing with onee-chan?"

From her side, Pierce squeaked in fear and dove fearfully behind her at the appearance of the two twins.

"I... I was only doing what everyone was supposed to do, chu! I f… found and brought Ally-chan back!" Pierce stammered, cringing in fear at the twin's gaze.

Dee and Dum scowled. "Why did it take so long to find her?"

"We were all worried! We bet _you_ were the one that took Ally-chan away from us!"

Pierce's face blanched and he cried, "No! I did not do that! I did not!"

"We should punish him, shouldn't we, brother?" Dee retrieved his gun.

Dum smiled and followed suit. "Oh yes. Punish the Dormouse!"

"Really, guys. Don't bully, Pierce! He was only helping me get back. He didn't..."

But Allysia's defense fell on deaf ears.

Before she knew it, the Dormouse behind her released a terrified howl and darted away. The twins shouted in excitement and chased after him, gunfire resounding in the halls. Allysia sighed and watched the three run away, a pang of worry unfurling in her heart.

"I hope Pierce will be okay... The twins better not take their games too far and hurt him," she mumbled aloud.

"I wouldn't worry about the Dormouse that much, Allysia." She jumped in surprise, looking to see Elliot appear by her side. "He's a part of our mafia after all. Despite his cowardly ways, he's still very strong."

"Wait... Pierce? Pierce Villiers? _Our_ Pierce Villiers is part of this mafia?"

Elliot was nonplussed by his inquiry and met her wide gaze with a hint of surprise. "Oh, you didn't know? Yeah, the mouse is part of our mafia and used to stay with us... that is until the twins and that cat scared him out of here."

"But what in the world does Pierce even _do_ here?"

"He's our undertaker."

It was said so casually, so matter-of-factly that she was rendered completely speechless. She could not even imagine that clingy, cowardly mouse was part of the mafia, but as their undertaker? She mentally refused to believe it.

"But are you okay? We were all very worried about you. Did something happen between you and our boss?"

At the mention of the Mad Hatter, her heart twisted in guilt. She replied, "I'm fine. Nothing really happened. It's just that I had my own personal issues to work out."

Elliot examined her expression for a moment, brows knitting in worry. "Well are you well enough to report to Blood your safety? Or would you rather me do to?"

"I can do it myself, Elliot... I think that'd be best."

The March Hare nodded is head in acceptance. Allysia inhaled deeply and walked towards Blood's door. Elliot quietly tagged along by her side. Their walk there remained impeccably silent, broken by the light patter of footsteps.

Not that she minded. She welcomed the stillness, giving her proper time to think and go over what she wanted to say in her head.

Finally, they arrived. Allysia's breath stilled. She looked over to Elliot, who nodded his head in encouragement. She swallowed, opened the door, and stepped inside.

"Blood... I'm back."

The mafia boss looked up from his paperwork, looking over to the uncharacteristically meek foreigner standing before him.

"Ah, milady, you finally return. We all were worried. Are you feeling better now?"

She nodded and seated herself silently down on the couch. "Hey... I just wanted to say that apologize for my earlier behavior..."

"It's alright, milady. I've faced much worse."

She obstinately shook her bead. "No, it's not alright. I've been taking my insecurities out on you, and it's not fair." She fell silent for moment. "In fact… I haven't been completely fair to you at all. It wasn't right for me to go off and yell at you earlier… or compare you to my ex. In the broad scheme of things, everything reminds me of him."

Blood leaned forward and asked, "If you don't mind asking, how exactly do I remind you of him?"

Allysia turned to face him, his eyes alight with curiosity.

Her lips curled into a wry smile. "As I said before, it's how you act, how you hold all these qualities I seem to lack – self-confidence and a sureness of who you are and of exactly what you want."

'_And__unfortunately_I_wasn't__what__Terrence__wanted._'

Her gaze dropped at the thought, and she exhaled sharply. "How Terrence and I met was something out of those corny romance novels. He literally came out of nowhere and saved my life from a horse that gotten lose and stampeded towards me. Soon after, we started dating. Throughout the entirety of our relationship, he'd give me the weirdest presents – all these girly, frilly dresses. My cousin was into those things, not me. But I liked him too to really mind. So I let him dress me in silky clothes Eclaire would wear, allow him to _try_ to reform me into a proper young miss just like Eclaire. I never struck me as strange... until I realized who he was trying to make me be, how much time he had been spending time with _her_ instead.

"By the time I figured it out, it was too late. Eclaire came wailing to me that he confessed that she was the one he loved, not me. To make a tragically long story short, I broke up with him. That was that."

"What about your cousin? Were you upset with her?"

Allysia shook her head. "She swore she never felt the same about him or had any idea he harbored such feelings. I forgave her easily. It's not like I could be mad at her anyway... the only one I was mad at was myself... and I still am." She hugged the bag tighter to her chest. "It was foolish of me to believe he'd actually want me. I will always pale in comparison to her, that sparking gem. Why'd anyone like a plain rock instead?"

No matter how much people try to dress her up and change her, she was and will always be this plain, dull thing thrown to the wayside for the glory of her cousin. That was just how things were meant to be.

For several moments, everything remained silent. Allysia couldn't find it within herself to say any more. Her gaze remained fixated on the floor.

"Well, he is even more pathetic than I originally thought." Allysia snapped her bead towards the Hatter. "You're actually more like a jewel that has yet to be polished and appraised, like a diamond hidden in the rough. That man is just too foolish to recognize it."

She released a half-hearted scoff. "Me? A diamond? Now that's going a bit too far, Blood. Even for you." Despite herself, the foreigner smiled in gratitude. "But thank you anyway."

Then she suddenly remembered. Glancing down at the bag, she laughed at herself, at her own silly worries and concerns. "To think I thought apologizing to you would be hard... I even got you an apology present..."

Blood perked up in interest, left his desk, and went over to her side. "Really? May I see what got me?"

She hesitated for a moment, but then conceded. She handed over the bag. "Sorry I couldn't put it in a nicer bag. I was kind of in a rush."

Still, Blood took the bag, peeking at its contents. He looked remotely surprised, lifting out a single white box.

He turned to her with an inquiring brow. "Boxes. You got me a bag full of boxes. Is this some sort of revenge for your unbirthday present? I never saw you as the vindictive type, milady."

"Why don't you open one of the boxes and find out?"

The Hatter scrutinized her expression for a moment and turned his attention back to the box. He gave it a quick shake. Deigning that there was nothing potentially lethal hidden inside, he opened the box.

His eyes widened, his composed front dropping ever so slightly. He could not believe what he was seeing. He reached inside and lifted out a single, pristine tea cup. He looked over at the foreigner, seeing she had averted her gaze, seeming overly interested with the seams in the hem of her dress.

"I noticed the old ones were kinda dingy so I bought you a whole new set. Do you like it?"

Blood blinked in uncharacteristic surprise. He looked at the cup for another moment and smiled. "Why, yes I do. Thank you. This is considerate of you, milady. I'll be sure to treasure it." Her lips curved in relief. Blood placed it back in the box and put the bag aside. "Now getting back on topic of that uncouth heathen..."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! I thought we were done with that?" she said, clearly in no mood to talk about it again.

Blood grinned. "In a sense we are. I just wanted to ask a single question. Do I still remind you of your ex?"

"No, not really. You don't." Getting to know Blood better proved he was very different in every possible way. His confidence was more like narcissistic conceit and his sureness was more like arrogance and an overinflated sense of worth. Definitely different from Terrence's more selfless and humble personality.

Blood grin widened. "Good. I can assure you that I am unlike that fool... especially in one aspect."

"Oh really? How so?" she challenged. Allysia could think of several. She stiffened. Her whole body fell completely still when he twirled her hair between his fingers.

"Unlike him, when I see something I want, I will not hesitate to take it."

Before she knew it, Blood was on top of her, pinning her body down onto the couch, caging her with his arms.

"Blood, what the hell are you doing? Get off of me!" she shouted, struggling to push him off.

A chuckled resounded through his chest, rumbling against the tips of her fingers.  
"Just simply proving my point. I bet a man of his questionable propriety had tried doing something like this you, hasn't he?"

"Of course not! Though he's a jerk, he was nothing, but a complete gentleman! He'd never even think of doing something like this to me!" she spat out.

The admission only seemed to please him more.

"Just as I thought. That's our second difference. Unlike him, who pretends to be gentleman" – Blood leaned forward, pressing his mouth to her ear – "I can assure you with absolute certainty that I am no such thing."

His warm breath tickled her flesh, sending an unprecedented shiver down her spine.

Before Allysia could retort or Blood could begin to harass her, there was a knock on the door.

"Hey are you guys alright?"

'_Elliot!_'' she thought brightly. If anyone could save her and her virtue from this compromising situation, he can! Like Pierce had been her savior from Ace, certainly Elliot could be.

"We are just fine, Elliot," Blood answered.

"Well is there anything you need? How about some tea?"

Allysia opened her mouth to speak, but Blood quickly covered it with his hand.

"Tea would be much appreciated. Thank you, Elliot." Blood called out to him, glancing over to her when she released a muffled, horrified squeak.

Elliot mumbled in understanding and left, his waning footsteps almost thundering in her ears. Then all was silent. Elliot, her one chance of salvation, had left her.

'_I__should__have__known__that__j__could__t__be__lucky__twice__in__one__day..._"

"I hope milady wasn't thinking she could get away that easily." His breath was husky and warm on her skin. His gloved hand left her mouth and traveled down her bare arm, skimming down her side. "Because I am far from done with you."

Allysia froze in her place, her skin suddenly tingling at his touch. She clung tightly to her wits and growled, "Well if you haven't noticed, I am done with you."

Blood chuckled and teased, "My dear, I believe you are mistaking anger with arousal. Don't be ashamed to admit it."

If Allysia was angry before, now she was bristling with fury.

"Trust me. It's anger alright. Our business is done and over with. I'm asking nicely one last time – let me go!"

"But our business is far from done." Her anger was doused slightly by confusion. He added, "I need to thank you properly for the present... and I intend to do so quite thoroughly."

"Like I'd let you. I hope you don't thank everyone like this," she mumbled crossly.

"Jealous?"

"Absolutely not."

Blood chuckled in response. Allysia then came to a new sort of conclusion. If Blood was going to act like this, then this was the last time she _ever_ did anything nice for him.

{ღ}~{ღ}~{ღ}

"Hey Allysia!"

At the sound of her name, she stopped in the middle of the hall.

She smiled and watched the Elliot hare run to her side. "Good morning, Elliot. What's up?"

He waved an envelope towards her. "There's a letter here for you!"

"Really? From who?" Elliot did not say a word and simply handed it over to her. Allysia stared at the red paper, the light, fragrant scent of roses. She blinked. "Why did I get a letter from the Castle of Hearts?"

Elliot shrugged his shoulders, equally perplexed. There was only one way they could find out.

With Elliot looming over her shoulder, she broke the seal and began to read the letter.

* * *

A/N Notes: I would have finished this sooner, but so many things got in the way – mostly school and weather related.

Oh well… it's out now. Also I want to announce I'll be on a short hiatus from writing. Real life… what can you do?

Thanks for reading~


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